September is here and this week will see all of our divisional students and staff back in our buildings. With the start of a new month comes a new monthly ICT newsletter. These newsletters are designed to serve as an outreach to all MVSD staff and provide: general ICT updates (software changes, divisional ICT timelines, tech-themed holidays) upcoming PD for the month tech tips divisional highlights These newsletters are sent out to staff via our divisional email but are also shared out through our social media pages and divisional website. September 2021 ICT Newsletter by Kirsten Cali
Back to School Checklist
Welcome to a new school year! At the start and end of each school year I find it helpful to share out the following checklist that was inspired by a practice from when I was a classroom teacher. This checklist is designed to ensure the effective and professional use of various ICT elements and support your growth in the 2021/2022 school year. Please note that not all checklist elements may apply to you depending on your position within the division. The checklist itself has each task hyperlinked which leads to a tutorial or video providing more information on how to… Read More
Happy New Year!
I don’t care what anyway says, back-to-school season is the new year for teachers! I took a conscious step back from this blog in June of 2021 while I was reporting from home in the spring to align with my mental health needs during the end of Manitoba’s third wave of the Covid-19 pandemic. As summer break started I made the decision, for the first time in my teaching career, to NOT participate in any type of education- or technology-related professional development. This was partly in response to the need to recharge after the school year but also in preparation… Read More
#TechTipTuesday – YEAR END TECH CHECKLIST – Pt 1
Every Tuesday I share a Tech Tip on our social media pages to assist our staff in their use of technology as it relates to their role. As we progress through June, these posts will focus on the implementation of the Year End Tech Checklist that was introduced in this month’s newsletter. (For a history behind this initiative, check out my post from 2020). Each Tuesday of the month will look at a specific topic from the checklist in more detail. FILE ORGANIZATION As we progress from one school year to the next it is important to organize any professional files; whether… Read More
Welcome to June!
June is here! With the start of a new month comes a new monthly ICT newsletter. These newsletters are designed to serve as an outreach to all MVSD staff and provide: general ICT updates (software changes, divisional ICT timelines, tech-themed holidays) upcoming PD for the month tech tips divisional highlights These newsletters are sent out to staff via our divisional email but are also shared out through our social media pages and divisional website. The 2020/21 Year End Tech Checklist is now available and here to support you as you wrap up the final month of classes. Our social media accounts will… Read More
WOW Wednesday – ICT Team
Every Wednesday I highlight some of our amazing MVSD staff on our social media pages. Everyday our staff are using tech in new and exciting ways, are learning new skills, and are sharing ways in which ed tech is assisting them in their practice. As I mentioned in yesterday’s post, we have transitioned into another round of remote learning. As a result, uptake in our laptop loan program has dramatically increased at a time where our team was initially expecting to start receiving laptops back for returns. I think it is important to note that, as a new program this year,… Read More
#TechTipTuesday – Steps Recorder
Every Tuesday I share a Tech Tip on our social media pages to assist our staff in their use of technology as it relates to their role. Over the course of the past two weeks we have seen all seven of the schools located in the city of Dauphin transition into remote learning due to an increase in Covid-19 cases. As such, our staff are working to re-establish our remote learning routines for themselves, students, and our MVSD families. Some of our schools, such as the DRCSS, have been in a blended-delivery mode all year which has made this transition quite smooth.… Read More
I’m Vaccinated!
Today was a very exciting day as I received my first round of the Pfizer vaccine for the prevention of Covid-19! I was the last adult in our family to receive my dose as everyone else became eligible before me due to their age or status as a first-responder. When I moved into this position I received advice from many long-time administrators & coaches about the importance of being visible and available. “Set up shop for the day in the school library, auditorium, or cafeteria” “Do walking tours of each school regularly” “Participate in school spirit events, attend productions/sporting events/etc”… Read More
AR/VR in the Classroom
If you walked by my office this Friday you most likely had this thought: Today I spent some time formatting our new virtual reality headsets from Class VR. If you are a regular reader of the blog you know that one of my areas of focus during my M.Ed was looking at ways that technology can increase educational opportunities for rural and remote schools. Whether it is decreased field trips and guests speakers due to geographical constraints or lack of lab and immersion activities due to limited budgets; rural and remote schools often face a more narrow scope of experiences… Read More
WOW Wednesday – MVSD Video Conference & Asynchronous Programming
Every Wednesday I highlight some of our amazing MVSD staff on our social media pages. Everyday our staff are using tech in new and exciting ways, are learning new skills, and are sharing ways in which ed tech is assisting them in their practice. One of my roles in MVSD involves the organization of our divisional video conference schedule. As of 2021 this also includes asynchronous programming. This includes planning with participating schools, communication of schedules, maintenance of required equipment, and professional development for staff. Each of our 6 senior years schools is identified as a subject-specific hub and specializes in… Read More