How Do I...?

As you can see, this little experiment has been pretty pivotal for me. My colleagues can attest to the fact that when I'm excited about something, I can't keep my mouth shut. (Chalk that partially up to being a Southern female.)

Regardless, and for better or worse, I've gathered some of the questions I've been asked in the last 92 hours:

1) How do you do class work?

Depends on what it is. We are mastering the art of group conversation and listening, but when it comes down to handing classwork in, I have each student share a Google Doc for that chapter's classwork. They do an exercise from the book, or type the answers from a PDF or document I have on the projector, and I automatically have the end product in my Google Docs.

2) You're a language teacher right? How do the students practice vocabulary?

Quizlet flashcards. At the end of studying they take the "Test" and screen-capture the grade. Then they email it to me. Study Stack also has something similar.
There's also several iPhone/iPod apps.

3) How do you do homework?

Questions from a textbook? a shared Google Docs homework page
Questions from a PDF? see above
Open ended questions? a google doc or a blog
Mind Mapping? Mapmeister
Practice vocabulary? Quizlet and take a screen-shot of the grade. Email me.

4) How do you grade?

Like I normally would if I had a crapload of papers on my desk. Now it just looks like I'm internet shopping all day.

If the work is in a Google doc or Word document, I add a comment box with the grade. If it "accidentally gets deleted," I just add it again (and again, if necessary).
If the work is on Classmarker.com, I sit back and relax, letting the machine grade the answers for me.

5) How do you avoid kids sharing their documents with each other?

a) I can see who is collaborating (or who has collaborated in the past) on any shared document.
b) I also have them pledge each assignment in their document?

6) How are you gonna give a test?

Classmarker.com = both objective and subjective questions. The objective questions will be graded by classmarker.com; the subjectives will be graded by me personally.

7) How do you give them handouts?

I have a PDF folder of every handout I give, so I can shoot them all a group email with an attachment or I can post it on my assignment page at school. I have also experimented with livebinders.com I have all of them stored there as well, and my students can download what they need from a binder I have shared with them.

8) How do they take notes?

Evernote, Word, or the students just listen. I have actually found the latter just as effective as typing class notes.

9) How do you handle one kid having a tech problem and 20 other kids just sitting there waiting for you to fix it?

Thankfully, I'm part ninja. Middle Schoolers know how to entertain themselves without upsetting me most of the time, so it works out. In the back of their heads, they know that they could be the one having an issue and asking for help, so they are usually pretty courteous to their classmates. Some of them play a quick game of widget basketball on the dashboard of the computer. They aren't hurting a thing by keeping themselves wholesomely entertained while I help a student.