JAYLYN BELL

This week, I decided to get creative and find some new ways to use Canva to make a simple lesson plan come to life!

I used an awesome new screen recording tool called Loom to record my explanation and video! Loom can be used for creating and sharing video in the workplace or personally. I decided to watch the first few videos on the website under the “Getting Started” section that gave me a quick guide on how to use the program – including how to record introductions & presentations!

Rather than just recording the audio as I have in the past with ScreenCastify, I actually recorded the video of myself on camera explaining it as well.

With Loom pinned on your toolbar, this is how you turn on both your camera and microphone:

I wanted to work my way up to this point & I feel it worked very well! I know that when I listen to podcasts, I often like to watch the YouTube or Spotify video that accompanies it. For whatever reason, being able to see the person makes the video that much more engaging and entertaining for the listener!

After I finished recording my video, Loom had a number of suggestions with the help of their AI assistant on how to improve the quality.

It instantly adjusted the video to 1.2x speed which brought it from 27 to 22 minutes. I then selected the “Edit & Trim Video” option:

In this video, I explain the ways that Loom helps improve your audio to make your video sound much smoother and more by removing filler words & silences:

It’s amazing how big of a difference these simple changes can make – it sure makes your videos much sharper and sound much more professional.

In this video, I explain how to bring your lesson plan to life with all sorts of different pictures, elements, graphics, and ways to make a boring task much more enjoyable and dynamic 🙂

After recording this video, I also began thinking about how I could also use this tool to record my lessons ahead of time and allow the students to access them online.

I remember during COVID when I was completing a psychology degree, most of my classes were asynchronous online. For me personally, this style of learning was extremely helpful and effective!

I decided to search why that might be, and found an interesting article called “6 Advantages of Asynchronous Learning”.

According to the article, asynchronous learning “offers the flexibility to learn at your own pace and without the need for real-time interactions with an instructor”.

My most important takeaway from this article was the point they made about being “accessible to all learners”. They discussed how it provides a significant advantage to those who may have a learning disability.

Sometimes as educators, we have a tendency to overload our students with information and it can be hard for them to try and remember all the steps and instructions correctly.

An solution to this shortcoming is having all of your information accessible online:

• Video Lessons/ Recordings
• PowerPoints
• Worksheets
• Additional Resources
• Websites for Extra Practice and Information

The sooner we can train our students to use this to these online tools advantage, the better.

Just as we have access to materials in University (UR Courses/Canvas for example), there is no reason we can’t have this for our elementary to high school students as well. Giving the students and their parents unlimited access to our daily lessons, materials, and handouts, worksheets, etc is invaluable.

The school I am currently pre-interning at uses a program called Edsby, students are able to hand in and take pictures of their work here for their parents to view and teachers to mark.

This could be particularly helpful for students that may have certain learning difficulties (hearing, writing, listening, etc.) that would benefit from a different style of delivery.

If you notice that certain students are benefitting from this method of delivery, you may use your discretion to decide how/when to use these methods potentially over others.

Additionally, this is beneficial in the event students are absent, would like to hear the explanation or parts of it again, review the materials during class, or while they are working on a task at home.

Giving unlimited access will assist in collaboration, communication and understanding for your students 🙂

 

Hi friends!

This week, I decided to use a good old fashion blog post titled: “37 Canva Hacks, Best Canva Tips & Tricks for Beginners” to help me with my learning project!

I decided to try a new tool called Animoto for my screen recording & it worked very well! I was hoping to use it for my video, but the free version didn’t quite provide what I needed! I wanted to be able to speed up, edit, adjust, and add audio to my clips that I was unable to do. Instead, I decided tried something else for the first time which was make a TikTok video!

I actually really enjoyed using it because there are so many choices and ways to make your video engaging! Everything from choosing catchy music, to adding different transitions that make the video less choppy and more aesthetic, to all different kinds of texts, colors, backgrounds. I used this website from TikTok to help me learn how to edit!

1. Inserting & Aligning text to the middle of the page using the grid tool

• Text: Add Text Box
  • Dragging and adjust to the center indicated by the red lines
  • If you want to add additional text, copy and paste the original text and adjust accordingly to maintain consistent font, size, and style.
  • It may seem simple, but paying attention to these small details is important in showing the students your effort and maintaining their attention
• Examples for Use in the Classroom:
  • Text is a key component of every lesson
  • Don’t overcrowd your slide with text – it will cause your students to lose interest
  • Only put the essentials & the reminders you need to teach
    • Questions are great – they lead to further discussion and force students to think

2. Inserting a background image from stock

• Elements: Photos
  • Select “See all” to browse all stock images
  • Search for more specific graphics and pictures depending on what you are creating
    • Example: Christmas, Nature, Science, School
• Example Use in the Classroom:
  • Pictures make your presentations WAY MORE ENGAGING!
  • Many children are visual learners
  • Canva has a variety of photos, graphics, elements, cartoons, etc. and is friendly for all grades, ages, seasons, and presentations!

3. Add effects/animations to make your text pop and bring it to life!

• Select your text box
  • Top tool bar: Animate
  • Select an animation that suits your design
• Examples for Use in the Classroom:
  • Animations can make your presentations much more dynamic and lively
    • Especially for title slides

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

4. Insert Shapes

• Elements:
  • Shapes: “see all”
  • You can use to create your design or as a background for your text
• Examples for Use in the Classroom:
  • Shapes can be used as borders for your text
  • To fill in gaps on letters
  • To highlight numbers
  • Can be layered creatively for dimension

5. Search & Insert Audio

• Elements
  • Search: “audio”
  • Can specify the mood with terms like: pop, rock, jazz, chill, upbeat, etc.
  • Top tool bar “edit”
    • Allows you to increase / decrease the fade in or out
• Examples for Classroom Use:
  • Inserting audio for “fitness breaks” during class
  • Creating more engagement during certain parts of your presentation where it fits
  • “Happy Birthday”

 

6. Drawing Designs & Messages

• Draw
  • Select Pen, Marker, or Highlighter
    • Adjust color using the circle
    • Adjust the weight with the thin/thick symbol
• Example For Classroom Use:
  • Writing your expectations for when the students enter the room in the morning on the SmartBoard
  • Allows students to come up and draw, circle, point to, and use the SmartBoard during class discussions
  • Using the highlighter during lessons to emphasize and point to what you are referring to

7. Insert Polls & Quizzes

• Elements
  • Polls & Quizzes
  • Select “see all” for more options
• Example Questions to use in the classroom:
  • Who is the premier of Saskatchewan?
  • Which of the following are considered adjectives?
  • Which of the following is NOT part of an animal cell?
  • What subject do you enjoy most?
  • What is your favourite part of winter?

8. Insert Graphs & Charts

• Elements
  • Graphs & Charts – “see all”
    • Line
    • Bar
    • Scatter
    • Pie
    • Infographic
    • Area
• Examples for Classroom Use:
  • Input math activity data for students to see
  • Show the students trend lines, patterns, etc.
  • Use different colors to compare

9. Create Holiday Cards / Invitations

• Elements
  • Search “Christmas”
• Examples for Use in the Classroom:
  • Show students inspiration for different holidays and events like Christmas, Thanksgiving, Halloween, Mother’s/Father’s day
  • Keep your presentations festive and relative to the time of year!

Welcome back everyone!

Picking up from where we left off last week, I am going to show you the sweet new tool called “Magic Write” that is basically your brain/schedules new best friend 🙂

Maybe you’ve exhausted the materials that Canva supplies and you still aren’t finding exactly what you’re hoping for. This is where Magic Write comes in …

Also known as your Personal AI assistant there to help you with anything you could possibly want to create/plan/organize.

It could be anything from a lesson plan, to a presentation, to a worksheet, to a exit slip, to an activity. Whatever you may need help with or an idea on – it’s got you covered!

Simply select the “magic write” option from the left side of the toolbar

You will then be asked to enter in what you are hoping to create or need help composing!

I have created an Instagram Reel you can watch by scanning this code to see the steps!

*ps. I know it’s not perfect, but it already took me too many tries LOL – my skills still need work!!

** Side note: I found another handy tool via Instagram from a teacher named Amy McMahon this week called Magic School (check it out if you need help putting ideas into lesson plans, differentiating, writing assessments/feedback, and communicating more clearly) ***

This week, I discovered maybe the best resource so far – I wish I had found it even sooner!

Canva itself actually has a “Design School” with a course called TEACHER ESSENTIALS !!

I don’t think there’s a better place to learn about Canva than Canva itself… lol

Let’s dive right into it …

Kickstart Lesson Planning:

• STEP 1: OPEN CANVA & SELECT TEMPLATES FROM THE LEFT MENU BAR

• STEP 2: BROWSE THE RANGE OF RESOURCES SPECIFICALLY DESIGNED FOR TEACHERS
  • You can select specific: grades, subjects, and resource types to narrow your search
  • The video below also shows you exactly how to get there!

• I created this video with the help of Screencastify which allowed me to show my screen while recording my voice so I could talk you through exactly what I was doing.
• I then clipped my recordings in the editor and saved the entire video as an mp4.
• After that, I opened YouTube and selected the “Create” button that looks like a video camera with a + (shown in top left of photo).

• • I then selected “upload video” and dragged my mp4 into the box.
  • It will then prompt you to answer detail, audience, and visibility questions

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• • • It then chose to allow only users with the link to have access to viewing rather than making my video public.

• STEP 3: CHOOSE YOUR LESSON PLAN
  • I have provided examples from Grade’s 3 & 8 in the video below for different types of math lessons and worksheets!

• STEP 4: EDIT & TAILOR THE DESIGN TO MEET YOUR NEEDS/PREFERENCES
  • In this video, I show you how to change color schemes, add elements, and make the presentation your own!
  • As a trick, you can visit Canva Color Palettes and find the one you like best!

• The fonts I mentioned were from this TikTok:

@gyladigitals

Did you know that Canva has SECRET FONTS? I’ve rounded up some unique ones that you can use for your next project. Check out this list below: 1. Magazine letters 2. Pink Bubble Gum 3. Neon letters 4. Fluffy letters 5. Bamboo alphabet letters 6. Ice Cream Cone letters 7. @Cocomomo 8. Set:nAFENR3S-dk 9. Tropical letter watercolor illustration Try them out and let me know what you think. 🤗 If you also know some secret Canva fonts, share them in comments section. 🌻 #canva #tipsandhacks #canvasecretfonts #fonts #canvatips #canvahacks #digitalproducts #digitalproductseller #graphicdesign #canvacreator

♬ Shake It Off – Platinum Party

• Next week, I will continue using Canva Design School to show you how to edit lessons you’ve previously created outside of Canva (as pdfs, jpegs, etc.) to enhance their design!

I really enjoyed my learning process on Canva this week, the videos were easy to follow along with, the steps were descriptive and specific. They also did a great job of explaining when and why you may want to use these resources.

I found my process of using Screencastify to be quite simple and super helpful in my explanation of how to access the resources I was trying to describe. In many ways, it can be easier to say and show you how to do things rather than try to type and explain it! It provides a very basic way to make a simple video of your computer screen which is helpful in giving instructions.

It also allows the option for you to have your camera on but I chose not to for the purpose of this video. Once your video is created, you can crop your screen in the editor to capture only the necessary parts you’d like to share. This allows you to hide your top toolbar and the tabs opened up top without having to close anything out. For my next video creation, I would like to add music and possibly some effects so I think I will try to create an Instagram reel instead!

SAMR MODEL

The other great part about this tool is that you could use it to record digital lessons for your students ahead of time. If they are tasked with learning something on their computer, instead of directly teaching them how, you could have them actually using their computers to watch the video and follow along with you as they go! In my current pre-intern experience, every student has their own computer and they all use a program called Edsby that allows them to upload their assignments for grading and to keep the parents in the loop about what they’re working on. There are many times where the students run into different issues when downloading, uploading, and saving their work from different programs. This would be a perfect opportunity to have tutorial videos uploaded on how to complete these tasks rather than answering the same question 35 times (haha).

I know many students (including myself) tend to be visual learners and sometimes need to see things multiple times in order to properly understand. If you create a video lesson, they will be able to watch as many times as they want (even at home!). This is also beneficial if students need to catch up from missing class.

It also provides the option of choice, where you may have students who would rather be shown how to do it directly, which you can do with them as well. Some students also find it easier to use technology rather than write down the steps and then try to follow them – an example of a modification and substitution in the classroom as discussed in our article during class!

Hi everyone !!

Welcome to the second week of my journey of learning how to use Canva!

This week, I decided to explore the educational side of TikTok by simply searching “canva tips and tricks”

This was the first video I stumbled upon and it instantly brought so much joy!

@joyfulnoiseteaching

This Canva tip is going to be such a time saver ⏰ #canva #canvatips #canvatutorial #graphicdesign #techtip

♬ original sound – Emily

 

As someone who is VERY picky about colors and aesthetics, I will absolutely be applying this video to my future creations!

Let’s go through an example of how to do this together:

Take any image you’d like:

Then choose any color palette you’d like (from google) OR the Canva Color Pallete Website

Let’s take this neutral palette for example!

Simply copy and paste the image into Canva anywhere ONTOP of your original image.

You can then right click the palette image, select “apply colors to image” and BOOM – you’ve got this gorgeous look:

 

After finding this trick, I continued exploring  “All Day April” on TikTok & found a couple more helpful tips:

• Since you want to be wandering about your classroom while teaching your lessons rather than being tied to your computer (obviously) she shares how to use your phone as the remote to control for your presentation slides by scanning the QR code connected to your slideshow. This allows you to go from slide to slide, and use the magic shortcuts such as (curtain calls, the “shhh” emoji telling students to be quiet, and confetti).
• She shows you how to take old pdf’s and insert them directly into Canva – this way if you are using some older material you’ve taught or a lesson/worksheet you’ve gotten from a coworker or online, you are able to make it your own very simply. You can switch up the fonts, colors, and formatting as you please.

I will absolutely be revisiting her page for future content and hacks!

I then explored another YouTube video called “5 Canva Hacks for Teachers” from an account I called Pocketful of Primary.

My favourite new hack I learned was using AI Integration with the Magic Write tool – which is very similar to ChatGPT! (9:50 in the video). This option is available when using the Doc or Presentation format.

The process is as follows:

• Select the create a design tab
  • Open a Presentation or Doc
    • Click the circle in the bottom left corner with the stars and type in “magic write” to select the tool

• • • You can then type in exactly what it is you are looking to create.
    • In her example she uses: “Write a permission slip for a fourth grade field trip to the Museum of Natural History”.

• • • It will then generate an outlined permission slip for you to edit and use as you please.

This is just another example of how to be extra efficient when creating the necessary forms, slips, letters, and other materials needed on a frequent basis!

Another secret to using this tool is to actually have it write your lesson plans for you with the given topic and time frame you have … more on this later 🙂

The thing I love most about learning from platforms like YouTube and TikTok, is how easy it is to find the videos and how quickly you can learn an entirely new skill! I find it very easy to make sense of this type of content because you can pause the video in order to follow it step by step yourself as you go. Whether you are simply looking to expand your knowledge more generally, or are looking for how to do something specific, both of these platforms can reliably help you find the answer to the question you have! The beauty of both of these resources is that they can be accessed by anyone and anytime, and their videos give a nice demonstration of exactly how you navigate the tools you are aiming to use.

Welcome everyone,

This is the home of my Learning Project for EDTC 300!

If you’re anything like me, you may struggle heavily with indecision.

Let me tell you how this process all started …

On the second day of class, Dr. Hildebrandt told us we could learn to do ANYTHING we want.

Immediately, my mind went wild with ideas! I thought about … starting a podcast, learning guitar (round 2), learning to teach yoga, speaking a new language, upgrading my cooking skills, taking up photography (seriously this time), I even googled things like “what should I learn to do?”

I then realized that most of my ideas are all things I’ve already tried or am still doing, just not too seriously! That got me thinking, what else could I do that would still be fun, require a bit more commitment, and help me in the future as a teacher?

I got thinking about the article we read for class called; “5 Reasons Why Your Online Presence will Replace Your Resume in 10 years,” I realized that the sooner I learn to use the online tools that will work to my advantage, the better off I will be in the workplace and more confident I will feel in my capabilities for the job. Rather than having a boring old resume, I could learn to create a digital one, while also making my lesson plans a lot more exciting and interactive for the students than a boring old PowerPoint I create from scratch.

This is when I landed on a completely new idea … CANVA. If you are unfamiliar with Canva, it’s an “online design and visual communication platform with a mission to empower everyone in the world to design anything and publish anywhere.” Although I had briefly explored it here and there, I knew it had potential to be an amazing resource for me and therefore, my students in the future.

Once I began diving in a bit deeper,  I realized that in the interest of saving time – it’s sort of like a treasure chest for teachers!

My plan with this project is to gain an understanding of how to access materials specifically designed for educators, how to utilize the tools within the program (fonts, elements, colors, designs, animations) that allow me to customize and be creative with my lessons plans. By the end, I want to learn how to share my knowledge easily with others through YouTube & TikTok videos 🙂 I would also like to be able to create lessons for my students that are available online so they have the ability to refer back to the materials at home or during school on their computers.

This upcoming week, I am going to dive deeper into more design techniques and hacks for teachers that can help me start creating some lesson plans for practice I will be making in other classes!