Washington Tech Tidbits

Magnetic Alphabet (Lite) provides a set of digital "magnets" that can be placed freely on a board. The free version includes only uppercase letters. You can change the color of the letters by tapping on them in the tray before dragging them onto the "board." You can also switch the board background. This app is great for primary literacy centers and word work.

Magnetic Alphabet is available on all Kindergarten and 1st Grade classroom iPads.

If you love The Tonight Show as much as I do, you need to check out Kasey Bell of Shake Up Learning's blog post on how to incorporate Word Sneak, one of the fun games that Jimmy Fallon plays with celebrity guests on his show, into your classroom.

To play Word Sneak, students are paired up and given a list of words (think vocabulary terms). Each partner must then try to "sneak" the words, in the order they're presented on the list, into a casual conversation as seamlessly as possible. Kasey Bell recommends including some random words and pop culture references to keep it exciting!

Head over to YouTube to check out some hilarious Tonight Show examples!

Mystery Skype is a critical thinking challenge that your students participate in while Skyping* with another class somewhere around the world. The goal is for your students to successfully guess the other school's location by asking only yes or no questions, such as:

• Are you located in North America?
• Are you east of the Mississippi River?
• Do you border an ocean/one of the Great Lakes?
  
• Do you share a border with Canada/Mexico?
• Are there mountains in your state?

Skype in the Classroom has created a Mystery Skype page where you can easily search for other teachers around the world who are interested in connecting for a Mystery Skype session. Click here to register and find a classroom. Another great way to find a Mystery Skype partner is to reach out on Twitter with the hashtag #mysteryskype.

Check out this website for more information on how to set up and run a Mystery Skype session. On this page, you will also find examples of questions to ask, as well as roles to assign your students during the Mystery Skype process. I would love to help you facilitate a Mystery Skype session!

*You don't have to use Skype to connect with another classroom/person. You can use Google Hangout, FaceTime, or even Twitter!

Below is a video that describes and shows classrooms participating in a Mystery Skype session.