In 2021 I applied for a Dickinson Education Foundation teacher grant and was awarded $10,000 to upgrade the document cameras at Dunbar Middle School. These new cameras are wireless and allow teachers the ability to move about the classroom as they need and take their document cameras with them. This allows for mobility but also for student engagement. Teachers are able to put the document camera on a student's desk and allow them to show the class their learning or their examples.

Google Workspace for Education gives students and teachers access to Gmail, Calendar, Meet, Docs, Sheets, Slides, Forms, Classroom, Assignments, Sites, Groups, Drive, and more. All of these tools can seem overwhelming. This training allows teachers to gain an overview of how to use these tools with students in their classrooms to build collaboration.

DBQs or Document Based Questions use primary source documents as well as curated readings to help support students in learning to read smart, think straight, and write more clearly. The goal is to develop high-level critical thinking skills if they have consistent instruction and a chance to practice while preparing students for an AP test when they reach high school.

This PD walks teachers through a modified version of the DBQ model that allows students the ability to complete the DBQ process without becoming overwhelmed and discouraged. This gradual release model has proven to be helpful in the classroom when first introducing students to the DBQs.

Did you know that QR codes were originally developed by Toyota to track parts in their factories?

The pandemic has brought QR codes into the limelight but that hasn't always been the case. This PD introduced QR to teachers in 2016 and covered different uses for them through the classroom.