Category Archives: Research & Studying Supports

Supports for Research & Studying

Organizing Information Using OneNote

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OneNote is a tool included in the Microsoft Office Suite of programs. It acts as a digital binder where a user can keep notes in a variety of formats. Users can include text, audio, or photos and organize them using colored tabs in sections within a binder. Additional tabs and sections can be added and then rearranged as necessary. Every student in LCPS has access OneNote. Watch this short introductory video titled “What is OneNote?” to learn more about OneNote to decide if it might help you or a learner you support.

Screenshot of OneNote

OneNote in Microsoft Office 365

 

A Strategy for Learning To Describe Anything

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One strategy to help learners understand a particular concept is to systematically describe the salient features of that concept. Asking oneself a series of questions provides that individual with a system for how to understand the concept. Some sample questions might be as follows:

  • What does it look, smell, taste, and/or feel like?
  • What is it made out of it?
  • Where does it come from?
  • Where can it be found?
  • What does it do?
  • How is it used?
  • What else do we know about it?

These questions can also be paired with colors, icons, and tactile symbols (like beads, 3D printed objects, or other materials) to provide a multimodal experience to help learners remember what to ask themselves. Placing the symbols in order, such as on a string or dowel, helps organize thinking into sequence helping to improve recall.

Watch the short video below to learn about one example of the implementation of this type of strategy.

 

 

Immersive Reader Integration into Nearpod

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Nearpod is an interactive, multimedia presentation tool. Immersive Reader is an embedded feature created by Microsoft. Immersive Reader provides text to speech, text display options, syllable and parts of speech support, and more! Explore the integrated features that Immersive Reader provides by watching this brief video below.

Three Ways to Use Text to Speech with Read&Write for Google Chrome

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Read&Write for Google Chrome LogoClick on the purple puzzle piece to install the Google extension Read&Write for Google Chrome.

Or click here for installation instructions in English

Or click here for installation instructions in Spanish.

  1. Click the play button play buttonto listen to text being read aloud in Google Docs, Google Slides, Google Forms, Google Sheets, Schoology, and the Chrome web browser. Try it now to listen to any text in this blog post!
  2. In Google Meet, click the Hover SpeechHover Speech Icon button to hear the text in the chat read aloud. Place the cursor over text in the chat…no need to click!
  3. Do you see text within a picture? Use the Screenshot Reader Screenshot Reader iconto draw a box around the text to have it read aloud. Try it with the text in the image below.Children at play sign

Sketchnoting

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Sketchnoting is a form of notetaking where the person taking notes draws an image. The visualization is meant to tie concepts together and can be made using a combination of text and pictures. The active process of creating the sketch note along with the visual representation of the concepts helps the learner make connections and remember the content. Beyond paper and pencil, any tool that provides a drawing feature could be used to create a sketchnote including but not limited to the following:

Check out this video from educator and author Carrie Baughcum describing sketchnoting.


 

 

Keeping Track of Found Resources

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The school year may be over but the learning never stops! Learning happens anytime, anywhere! When learners are doing their own independent research on the web they need a way to keep the resources they find. The Google Keep Chrome extension allows learners to save a link to a web resource (website, video, audio file, PDF, etc) directly into Google Keep. Users can add labels, colors, and text to the note to help with organization. Users can then access the web resource again from their curated list kept in Google Keep. Learners can use this method for keeping track of important materials they discover over the summer and beyond! The following video tutorial from Anne Arundel County Public Schools can help you learn how to save web resources into Google Keep.

Adjust screen brightness or color based on time of day

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The brightness or whiteness of a screen can impact how easy it is to experience content including text. Many devices, including student Chromebooks, have a setting which allows for automatically adjusting colors based on different factors, including time of day.

Keeping Track With Google Keep

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Technology can help educators and learners get and stay organized. Google Keep is both a desktop and mobile note taking application that works similarly to sticky notes which allows the user to add information in text, image, and audio formats. Once information is placed on a virtual sticky note, that note is placed on a giant virtual wall. Individuals can use the Search feature to filter notes placed on the wall. Notes can be labeled and organized into categories. Notes can even be organized by color. Each note can also be turned into a to do list which keeps track of what has been accomplished once it is completed. 

Google Keep also allows users to create reminders which link to the same user’s Google Calendar to help keep track of scheduled events. Notes made in Google Keep can also be pulled into Google Docs. Students (and educators!) can use Google Keep to keep track of everything! Check out this video tutorial to learn more.

Screenshot of Google Keep with labels on the left, a to do list, and examples of notes.

Screenshot of Google Keep with labels on the left, a to do list, and examples of notes.

Captions On For Literacy!

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Video is a common modality for educators to share, teach, and reinforce concepts. Captions exist to help individuals with hearing impairments experience the audio portion of the content. Evidence suggests that turning the captions on for video content can also help students, with or without hearing impairments, improve reading abilities. Pairing text with audio and visual content helps reinforce the meanings of words while simultaneously representing how they are spelled. 

Strategies can be used to encourage educators and parents to turn on the captions whenever students are experiencing video content. Consider crafting a “Captions On!” campaign for your learning space, grade level, or school promoting the idea that captions help improve literacy. Here are some potential action steps:

  • When choosing video content, encourage educators to only select video that has captions.
  • Invite parents to turn on captions at home whenever watching television or videos.
  • As students make meaningful contributions to the world by participating in authentic learning experiences, they might choose to create videos. When they do so, encourage students to consider an audience with diverse abilities by captioning their created video content.
  • Google Slides and Microsoft Powerpoint both have a live captioning option for when giving presentations. Encourage staff and students to turn on this feature to have the text displayed on the screen when using these tools to present in-person presentations.

Adopting and practicing a “captions on” mentality will help improve individual literacy skills while simultaneously working toward building a more inclusive and accessible future for all. 

Google Slide with captions on

Google Slide with captions on.

Learners at Algonkian Elementary Install Literacy Support Extensions

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LCPS returned to 100% distance learning on December 15th, 2020. Just prior, educators at Algonkian Elementary School worked to ensure that students installed the literacy support extensions of Read&Write for Google Chrome, Texthelp PDF Reader, and Texthelp Screenshot Reader. Thanks to the joint efforts of the Instructional Facilitator for Technology, Specialized Instructional Facilitator – Assistive Technology, and the Specialized Instructional Facilitator – Reading, learners also participated in experiences where they practiced how to use the tools to support their own learning. These extensions are available to anyone in LCPS! Install and use them today!

Way to go Algonkian learners and educators!

Learners in a classroom behind Chromebooks giving a thumbs up

Learners in a classroom behind Chromebooks giving a thumbs up