30 Student Response Systems

The list is growing!  It seems like there are new student response systems every month!  Now the trick is to find which one best suits YOUR teaching needs.  Feel free to add comments below sharing your personal experiences!

1. 81Dash
2. Answer Garden
3. Backchan.nl
4. Chatzy
5. Collaborize Classroom
6. EssayTagger (Grading Essays)
7. Exit Ticket
8. Geddit
9. Google Docs
1. Google Docs Video Tutorials
2. Flubaroo (Grading google forms!)
10. GoSoapBox
11. Hall.com
12. Heux
13. InfuseLearning (allows drawing!)
14. Kahoot!
15. Kwiq Poll
16. Mentimeter
17. Nearpod (iPad based)
18. Padlet
19. Peardeck (present AND get feedback!)
20. Plickers (Students don't need a device!)
21. Poll Everywhere
22. Pollmo
23. Quiz Socket
24. SimpleMeet.me
25. Socrative
26. Socrative 2.0
27. TodaysMeet
28. Understoodit
29. Urtak
30. Verso

Big Bro Google is Watching!

Many people are creeped out by this, but I think it's kinda cool:

https://maps.google.com/locationhistory/b/0

Google has a map of everywhere you've been!  Just click the link above and log in to your google account.

Get College Textooks as PDF's for Free

College Textbooks in PDF format:

http://gen.lib.rus.ec http://textbooknova.com http://en.bookfi.org/ http://www.gutenberg.org http://ebookee.org http://www.manybooks.net http://www.giuciao.com http://www.feedurbrain.com http://oll.libertyfund.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=380 http://www.alleng.ru/ http://www.eknigu.com/ http://ishare.iask.sina.com.cn/ http://2020ok.com/ http://www.freebookspot.es/Default.aspx http://www.freeetextbooks.com/ http://onebigtorrent.org/ http://www.downeu.me/ebook/ http://forums.mvgroup.org http://theaudiobookbay.com/ Source and more: http://www.reddit.com/r/trackers/comments/hrgmv/tracker_with_pdfsebooks_of_college_textbooks/c1xrq44

Imjur: http://imgur.com/gallery/R1XDNLo

Tuning with Drones + the Shruthi Box

She makes some great points.  I've used drone tuning in the classroom to drone, but it has been a while.  Time to dust off the cobwebs and start using it again!

Shruthi Box - Online version of the Shruthi Box!

Tuning Drone 1 - Use these to help center pitches - great for ear tuning!

Tuning Drone 2

Google Classroom vs. Schoology

Google Classroom VS Schoology

	Google Classroom	Schoology
Grading Rubric (to make grading easier and faster)		X
Don’t have to create a new login	X
Class discussions in a Facebook style		X
Polling / Student response systems		X
Testing / Quizes	Yes, with floobaroo	X
Assignment comments and feedback between teacher and student	X	X
More than 1 way to do things	X
Teachers can SHARE a class as admin	?	X
Large folders with different file types can be shared with all students		X
Share assignments between classes	X	X
Can hide discussions/comments from rest of class		X
Teacher can delete comments	X	X
Unlimited file size upload	X	limited to 500mb
Skyward (gradebook) Sync		X

At the start of this year our music department has taken on the task of moving the 7th grade band/orchestra over from practice record collection once every 2 weeks, to a new video "check-in" system.  Students are assigned a music excerpt or etude from the method book to prepare.  They then record themselves so we can address the musical AND the visual, including posture, hand position, etc...

So we were left with having to make a comparison, then finding which system would work best for us.  Long story short, we went with Schoology this year.  The main reason behind this was the rubric.  When a student submits a video, we click a button while watching the video which pulls up a rubric for us to grade them by.  Grading for us teachers is quick and efficient, yet still gives students ample and specific feedback.

Google Classroom has such amazing potential, but is currently a means to organize students sharing of docs using google drive.  Once Google Classroom incorporates rubrics, I think we may just switch over.

What differences and similarities have you found between the 2?  Feel free to leave comments below!

Free Resources

Free Resources

Chorales & Warm-Ups (http://pmhmusic.weebly.com/band-resources.html)

Phil Hash has transcribed several three- and four-part chorales from various hymnals. They are all in accessible keys and technically very simple to allow students to focus on fundamentals of tone, intonation, and balance. Each instrument has a designated part (soprano, alto, tenor, bass) for all chorales, which simplifies rehearsing individual voices and allows directors to distribute parts to fit the instrumentation of the ensemble.

The warm-ups are nothing revolutionary. They simply consist of basic long tone and scale exercises. Nonetheless, the creative director will find a number of ways to use them.

One Size Fits All Band Books (http://osfabb.com/index.html)

FREE music ideal for small concert bands. This site contains arrangements for flexible instrumentation for grade .5 through 2. There are numerous arrangements of familiar tunes suitable for holiday, patriotic, or other occasions. All parts contain the melody and a harmony line, making these arrangements suitable for soloists, small ensembles, or full band. The director (and students) can arrange these pieces in a variety of ways, or play them as recommended. The percussion parts are optional. GREAT RESOURCE FOR THE SMALLEST OF BANDS!!

TedED Talk on Instrumental Music

This TedED Talk (video) discusses some of the recent research on the potential benefits of playing an instrument might have on brain function. It is under 5 minutes and might be a useful tool on recruiting night or as a link in an email to parents. (http://ed.ted.com/lessons/how-playing-an-instrument-benefits-your-brain-anita-collins?utm_source=TED-Ed+Subscribers&utm_campaign=0fd1ca8b79-2013_09_219_19_2013&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_1aaccced48-0fd1ca8b79-47005797)

McCracken MS Band Web Site (http://www.mccrackenband.com/)

Director Chip DeStefano has posted several resources including first lesson practice exercises, recommended repertoire, articles, and free arrangements. This band made its second appearance at the Midwest Band and Orchestra Clinic in Chicago in 2014.

Band Music PDF Library (http://www.bandmusicpdf.org/)

The Band Music PDF Library offers over 3200 public domain titles from the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries for free download. Each download includes a full set of parts, a score (if one was published), and biographical information on the composers and arrangers. Although some pieces include modern parts, directors will likely need to transpose Db piccolo and Eb horn for modern instruments. Users can search by title, composer, grade level, genre, publisher, year, and other filters. Organizers continue to add new titles each month.

New National Core Music Standards (http://www.nafme.org/my-classroom/standards/)

On June 4th, 2014, the National Coalition for Core Arts Standards released NEW National Core Arts Standards. NAfME spearheaded the creation of the new music standards, led by a team of hundreds of music educators from across the country with over 1,800 years of combined teaching experience. These new standards are comprehensive, flexible and ready for use.

Assessment and Teacher Evaluation (http://pmhmusic.weebly.com/mi-teacher-evaluation.html)

This web page provides a number of links and resources related to assessment and music teacher evaluation in Michigan. Please feel free to contact Phil Hash at any time with questions.

Use Google Drive for Assignments? Try Google Classroom!

Problem: Want to use metronome or play music examples in class, but don't want to leave the podium.
Problem: Apple TV / Google's Chromecast is too pricey, and often (in the case of my school anyway) involves many issues with wireless that can mean the IT guys don't like you much.
Problem: Don't like having the device tethered to the speakers with a cord.

Do you already have some sort of audio equipment / speakers in your band room that you want to connect your phone to?  Then here are some possible solutions:

1. A battery powered Bluetooth wireless receiver.  The great thing is that there is both a battery powered option (see pic below) that I use for marching season:

Limited range to 33ft.... but battery powered.  Short range.

....or a plug-in-to-an-outlet classroom cart version, with more range to allow freedom to move around the classroom. 

....or an AMPLIFIED version, good up to 100ft!

These allow you to connect any bluetooth device, such as a smartphone, table, or laptop to the receiver. 

Sweet.

BUT.....Not as cool as this one, that let's up to 5 devices connect at the same time, up to 300 ft!!!!!

Moto Stream

Marching Season Approaches.....

Come See Big Band Nouveau @ Jazz at the Zoo - FREE

Get hip to the new big band in Grand Rapids, Big Band Nouveau!

Official Site: bigbandnouveau.com

The performance kicks off just outside the main gates of John Ball Zoo starting at 6:30pm on Monday, July 14th.  The concert is outdoors and free for everyone.

Hope to see you there!

Finale 2014 Time-Saving Tip for Range Issues

Here is a quick Finale 2014 tip to help speed up the range issues and/or octave transpositions:

First, select notes you want to transpose with selection tool.  Click and drag over note(s) or measures.

Quick octave transpositions on Mac:  

Function Key (fn) + 8 = Transpose note(s) down octave

Function Key (fn) + 9 = Transpose note(s) up octave

Alternately, use the plugin / scoring and arranging / Check Range, then click "check" button, then "change note".  Boom.  Moved to correct octave.

Playing Tests from Home

Next school year, we are piloting a new method of playing tests to swap out practice minutes.  This means more listening for us teachers, but a better feel for how the students are doing as individuals.

Here are some great resources to use to collect playing tests:

Google voice
The first method I ever used to do this.  Allows you to choose your own phone number.  It's like getting emails with a convenient slider to move back and forth in the recordings.  No computer necessary on the student side, just a phone.

Vocaroo
Super-simple interface.  Students can email their playing tests to you after recording as a link, or attach the file to an email.  Works with all devices.

Speakpipe
Just found out about this one.  Looks promising.

SmartMusic
If you have the $, this is my favorite.  However, not all music is in SmartMusic.  The one missing option is to have students record using SmartMusic.... as just a recording device, without needing to have the sheet music on the app.

My Favorite Student Response Systems Right Now

If your school has 1 to 1 student/device ratio, you need to know about these:

Peardeck.com

This is a type of presentation AND student response system all in one package.  It integrates with google docs and google presentation to make an amazing experience that not only allows the presenter to inform, but also to get instant feedback and ask questions.  Peardeck is a combination of the bullet-pointed standard of powerpoint mixed with the audience feedback of sites like socrative or infuselearning.

UPDATE: I just got word thorough the grapevine that this service may be pay-to-play after the beta is done testing.  I hope this is just rumor!!  With the other pay-to-plays out there teachers already have to fork over for sites like quizlet (if you want images), smartmusic, finale, and a dozen other web-based pay sites, it's going to break the bank to use this if it involves pay!

Kahoot

Students love this.  Love it.  Plug in your questions, and the students compete for points.  Very similar in format to the type of trivia you see in bars or restaurants where the faster you answer, the more points you get.  Very simple interface for both the teacher and students.  Check it.

Crash has Chops!

Here is a video from the recent end-of-the year, 8th grade band/orchestra/choir trip to Whitecaps baseball game.  The group performed the national anthem, and the 3 different mascots from the game were goofing around with the kids before the SSB started.  "Crash the River Rascal" has actually got some serious snare chops!

Video Conference Without Login

Appear.in is a super-friendly, easy to use online video chat for up to 5 people.  No login required!!

5 Good File Conversion Tools

Link to the blog from "Free Tech for Teachers"

1. Online Convert
2. iLovefile
3. Cometdocs
4. PDF4kindle
5. 2EPUB

Fastest, Easiest way to convert Youtube to MP3

This actually didn't work for me, but going to listentoyoutube.com did! (paste the youtube url into it!)

Student Response Systems

After visiting the MACUL conference in Grand Rapids, MI this past weekend, I was excited about the up and coming student / audience / classroom response systems being utilized.  The best one so far (in my opinion) was peardeck, which is still in beta at the time of this post.  The future of student response systems is undeniable as more and more schools go 1 to 1.

Here is my rag-tag listing of some pretty amazing audience-feedback type sites and apps currently out there in cyberland:

Classroom / Student Response Systems

1. Backchan.nl
2. Chatzy
3. Collaborize Classroom
4. EssayTagger (Grading Essays)
5. Exit Ticket
6. Geddit
7. Google Docs
1. Google Docs Video Tutorials
2. Flubaroo (Grading google forms!)
8. Hall.com
9. Heux
10. InfuseLearning (allows drawing!)
11. Kahoot!
12. Kwiq Poll
13. Mentimeter
14. Padlet
15. Peardeck (present AND get feedback!)
16. Poll Everywhere
17. Pollmo
18. Quiz Socket
19. SimpleMeet.me
20. Socrative
21. TodaysMeet
22. Understoodit
23. Urtak
24. Verso

Sitting too close to the screen? So what?!

So go ahead and read this blog for hours and hours, really close to the screen.

No One Can Download Youtube Vids Anymore.

In case you haven't noticed....

All Youtube download apps have stopped working.  Even Zamzar cannot do it anymore.  :(  This is the message:

Apparently google wants yo' green, so they have restructured their streaming process so that any files downloaded are zero k in size.

But if I know the internet and demand, someone will come up with something..... but it will be in violation of Google's end user agreement.  So you may just be better off paying for it.

If Google would give each downloaded video a price tag that was hella-affordable, I could see myself getting on board with the payment option.  Like, 10 cents per download, or even $.99 would still be affordable, since my need for videos stored locally on my hard drive is slim to never.

Need your music fix?  Use Spotify.  Videos can still be viewed online.... so for me, it is not a big deal yet.  With all the free offerings Google still supplies the general public, this is not the end of the world.  If google were to take away other offerings, I might start getting nervous....

2 Killing Jazz Recorder Videos

2 great jazz recorder videos:

3 Cool Sites

1) Repeat Youtube videos with ease with yourepeat... Watch the video:

2) Teachit Timer - Better than most online timers in that it counts down AND up!  More customizable than most others out there.

3) Down For Everyone or Just Me - Find out if a website is down for everyone or just you.

HOW to Practice - Video

It may be a bit dry, but it does have some valid points.  May use this to show students at beginning of the year, or to review.

Link

Music "Humor"

Michigan Music Conference Websites

LINKS FROM THE PRESENTATION

http://johnchurchville.com/students

http://www.21things4ipads.net/

http://www.21things4students.net/

http://mustech.net/

http://scmusictech.pbworks.com/w/page/42367790/Links

iPads in Music Ed

Functional Tech Sites

http://www.percussionmusiconline.com/

http://www.thepercussionroom.com/


PRESENTATION SITES

Google Doc that goes along with the presentation

AirPlay Presentation

Is the Concert Really the Curriculum?

Percussion Presentation, Percussion Powerpoint

APPS

Amazing Slow Downer

My Note Games

AutoRap

Best Online Video Conversion

This.  This is it.

http://savevideo.me/

There-ya-go.

Music that does NOT translate well to other genres/instruments

Of course, this is completely my personal opinion, but it is my blog.   So here is my short list so far.  My plan is to update this post as I come across more atrocities such as:

Metallica's "Master of Puppets" on Piano

I was surprised to have found this video on someone's facebook post as something they enjoyed.  Enjoyment is not what I got from watching this.

Paul Anka's Big Band Version of “Smells Like Team Spirit” by Nirvana

Okay, so it is possible that this arrangement might have worked had the original version never been heard by the listener.... but since I am familiar with the original, this version 'smells like something else'.