How 5 educators use digital tools in the classroom

Key points:

When it comes to classroom learning, it is common knowledge that students of all ages are a little more engaged when they can use an interactive or engaging learning resource, and that is why digital tools are so fundamental to teaching and learning.

Integrating digital tools into the classroom may seem intimidating to some educators, but fear not: it’s a relatively simple process once you’ve evaluated a tool and confirmed that it enhances your instruction and adds value to learning.

Since it's often easier to imagine how a tool or strategy might be integrated after seeing another educator do the same, here are some examples of how educators are using digital tools in their own classrooms:

McKenna Akane, a new STEM teacher at the Alberton School District in Montana, uses Bee-Bots. When looking at ways to engage students in STEM, STEM simulators and kits can significantly improve student engagement and understanding by providing hands-on, immersive learning experiences that bring theoretical concepts to life. STEM kits have proven invaluable at the K-5 levels, where you can use age-appropriate coding and robotics kits, such as Robot bees.

Jon Oosterman, an educator and learning specialist at the nonprofit Van Andel Education Institute, recommends Teachable Machine. Teachable machine Teachable Machine is a tool that has been around since 2017, but some educators may have overlooked it. This tool allows users to train models that will recognize images, sounds, or poses, allowing them to integrate ai learning into various subjects. This fosters an understanding of artificial intelligence in a stress-free and easy-to-understand way. Teachable Machine is free to use and very accessible, making it a great resource to help students figure out what a learning machine is and how it works.

Brent Grahn, a high school math teacher at Shakopee High School in Shakopee, Minnesota, uses Geogebra. Geogebra Geogebra offers analysis and graphing technology with pre-built activities. Geogbra has tools for everything visual and tangible in math. It has a great spreadsheet feature, allowing for easy one- and two-variable statistical analysis and all the main visual representations a teacher is likely to need. It also contains great geometry tools for properties of triangles, circles, and more. Plus, it contains a multitude of free, pre-built activities from Geogebra and other teachers. Most activities can be embedded, so students don't need to leave the safety of their LMS's class website.

Rita Mortenson, an educational technology coach at Verona Area High School in Wisconsin, uses Google Arts and Culture. Google Arts and Culture offers over 1600 experiments and counting. In addition to the extensive collection of artworks and cultural artifacts, it offers some pretty interesting immersive experiences. Some favorites include Blob Opera, a fun and creative tool where users can experiment and create music while learning how ai generates and synthesizes voices. There’s also 3D Pottery, where users can virtually recreate pottery from different cultures and time periods. With Kandinsky Music, students can explore art while experimenting with color and emotions. Lastly, with Art Coloring Book, students can choose a famous piece of art and color it with colors of their choice.

Middle school educator Lynn Thomas created an Escape Room mission using Brightspace. Thomas was inspired to use this activity in her classes by attending workshops and reading about the benefits and ways to gamify learning, as well as a specific Brightspace workshop on how to create an Escape Room through the platform. Thomas created an around-the-world adventure whose narrative begins like this: “You’ve been hired by a mysterious organization to complete a series of challenges. The details are very vague, but you’re very intrigued. All you know is that your problem-solving skills will be challenged and that you’ll have to learn as you go because, apparently, it also involves traveling around the world!” She selected an around-the-world theme because it offers a wide range of topics and materials to incorporate into the challenges.

Laura Ascione is the editorial director of eSchool Media. She holds a degree from the prestigious Philip Merrill School of Journalism at the University of Maryland.

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