Tech things worth learning

[BlsdMama]

because of the value they add to your homeschool day/life.

I am tech negligent - I don't like learning new things because they're hard and because I'm a tech nitwit.  But I often suspect there are things that would be value added if I'd commit to learning them and making them a habit.

What little or big things do you do (technologically) that make homeschooling better/easy/more consistent/lovely?

[Hunter]

I have a love-hate relationship with technology.

There was a lot that I did not do until Covid struck. Before Covid, I had transitioned to mostly Linux and an old dumb-phone with text but no data. Now ... sigh ... I am doing things that I thought I would never do. Risk is measured in context of the current environment.

Pry my Facebook Portal+ from my cold dead fingers. And I have spent way too much time playing with the Logos Bible software to adapt it to my secular studies of the Britannica Great Books series that can be purchased for Logos.

[PeterPan]

Well if you really want to get wild, you could explore Google Classroom. I'm just starting it with my ds, and it has some real advantages for kids with SLDs. It's very organized (for those EF issues), and it's easy to throw in links, create response forms, etc. So my ds can watch a youtube video or do a task and then fill out a form (short answer, multiple choice, paragraphs, etc.) using dictation. Sort of the updated version of read and notebook about it, hehe. And I haven't learned how yet, but I'm quite positive he could draw and then submit, take a photo and submit, etc. 

The other thing about tech is improving *my* life so *I* do things better. I was without the use of my right hand for a while here, sigh. I'm finally getting it back, doing therapy. But that was a real jolt. When you can't type and are just pecking, your output goes down dramatically. I realized I was extremely dependent on writing everything by hand. It works for me and gets things into my brain, but when you can't you can't. So I spent days trying to learn how to do with dictation/Siri things I had always just written out. I like my lists organized by store, so I set up Things3 and put in lists. Then I can tell Siri to add to those lists using Things. Boom. 

Then I learned how to do widgets. They're little shortcuts you can make for any app or sequence of steps. Some are available premade, but you can make any custom widget you want. Then you can voice activate it to do your bidding. Superpowers. I have a widget that creates a text to anyone I have listed in the widget to tell them when I'll be home, hehe. I downloaded another widget that turns the wifi completely off.

I watched a webinar on assistive tech that was good. I didn't need most of the ideas, so I skimmed. However the *buttons* idea I thought was fabulous and useful to a lot of people a lot of ways. Ok, maybe just here and a few other places, lol. There are recordable buttons, so I could record "I need a break!" and put that button on the table where we work. Ds' language drops when he's overwhelmed, so he could just hit the button and communicate. For assistive tech they will put out an array of buttons like that. Eye control, etc., I didn't need to go there. But it's pretty snazzy what is being done. 

So for me it was about figuring out what steps I'm already doing and then asking how those steps can be done more efficiently or in spite of my issues. 

I really like Bear btw. It's just a really beautiful note taking kind of app. I keep it open on a screen on my computer and I can just peck my notes into there. I usually keep spiral composition books on my desk for all my notes, brainstorming, thinking. I watch webinars and WRITE everything. 

I also went to a zero inbox email program (Spark). I am IN LOVE with zero inbox. After all these years, no more inbox guilt!

I'm fiddling with Trello for my own planning. It's handy in that it's cross platform and easy to copy things and duplicate tasks, cards, lists, etc. Google Classroom is a pain in the butt for that. Again, I have always done all my planning by hand, so it has been a fiasco not to be able to write. I found I could open 3 windows of Trello (yes, you can laugh) and make each about 4" high and stack them to see my entire plan and thought process on my screen. (large screen imac) Technically you can duplicate and share boards, giving or limiting access. So you could, in theory, use Trello to communicate work plans with kids. My ds is destructive, so he would destroy the board. I suppose there's a way to limit that, hmm. Maybe I'll do that for his geography. Right now I'm trying google classroom with him, but with google classroom you literally have to add each assignment individually. You can "reuse" a previous assignment, but it's not as fast as duplicating or copy/paste.

What do you not do that you want to do? What do you need to do better? One of my guilt trip things is integrating music better into our day. I want voice control of amazon music from my imac, and I don't have it. That means I either need to bring in an amazon product, like an echo dot OR I need to set up the android laptop thing I have lying around and get that doing it. Either way, that might address your "make my homeschool more lovely" thing. Then you'd have a way to easily play music. You could have morning playlists, independent work playlists, whatever. The key, if you want to use an amazon product, is to make sure it at least has *dual speakers* so it has reasonable sound. Or you can get a little bluetooth speaker (inexpensive) to connect to your device of choice.

Is there more you want to do? What do you WISH you could do?

Edited August 21, 2020 by PeterPan

[Hunter]

10 hours ago, OKBud said:

The only thing I can think of that adds tonnes of value is having  a plain kindle e-reader (not the tablet)  for everyone who reads. 

And having  a printer is pretty great haha does that count? 

In my very messy mucked up life, when everything else fell apart, a cellular connected Kindle reader is my blankey. No monthly fees and once you have paid for the device, you can "buy" and download whatever is free on Amazon, or you can sign up for a month of Amazon unlimited and have access to all sorts of stuff. And of course you have access to everything you have bought over the years.

Edited August 21, 2020 by Hunter

[daijobu]

I make extensive use of Google Drive.  It's a free cloud storage where I keep my important files, organized into folders and subfolders.  It's also a good place to store tickets to standardized tests when you receive them weeks in advance of the actual exam.  Then your student won't need to search his emails for it.  You can also file away your exam score reports, transcripts, grade reports or other documents.   

[vonbon]

On 8/20/2020 at 10:22 PM, Hunter said:

I have a love-hate relationship with technology.

There was a lot that I did not do until Covid struck. Before Covid, I had transitioned to mostly Linux and an old dumb-phone with text but no data. Now ... sigh ... I am doing things that I thought I would never do. Risk is measured in context of the current environment.

Me too.  Same here.  Wish I could opt out.

On 8/21/2020 at 5:19 AM, OKBud said:

And having  a printer is pretty great haha does that count? 

I love my printer...because I like to see lots of things on.........................PAPER!!!  😄

[vonbon]

Ooops!  This was supposed to be: Tech things worth learning

I'd say Google Drive helps with sharing docs for our co-op.  Easier than trying to make sure everyone received specific emails / attachments.  Though I don't appreciate Google spying on everything.  

[Slache]

ANKI. Hands down. My kids either know or will know every Greek word in the new testament, every country, capital and flag, everything from the content subjects I find necessary, random stuff they insist on putting in there. And I mean they know this stuff. It's truly memorized.

Use of The Cornell University bird app. We go on a walk, see bird, look bird up, learn about bird, use app to call bird, bird calls back, kids scream with excitement, bird flies away in terror. It's fun.

Google drive.

Audible.

Kinda books for use on Kindle paperwhite.

[PeterPan]

6 hours ago, Slache said:

ANKI.

I've seen you mention this and never played with it. I'm watching some youtube videos and it looks like it has a lot of capabilities. (cloze deletions, partial obscuring, enumeration, etc.) What techniques are you using with it? It seems to me it could be really snazzy with the VP history/Bible cards...

[Slache]

3 hours ago, PeterPan said:

I've seen you mention this and never played with it. I'm watching some youtube videos and it looks like it has a lot of capabilities. (cloze deletions, partial obscuring, enumeration, etc.) What techniques are you using with it? It seems to me it could be really snazzy with the VP history/Bible cards...

I don't do anything special. The upfront time investment is intense and by the time I had it down I didn't care to learn more. The time saved over time is worth it though. Maybe an hour a week. People definitely use them with VP/CC cards. I do use images, but that's drag and drop. If you search old threads there are amazing capabilities.

[Tree Frog]

1 hour ago, Patty Joanna said:

I don't have any particular app to mention, and I am past homeschooling.  But I will say that I have made a commitment to learn new technology, to see what is out there (will take a look at ANKI next) because I want to keep that part of my brain as elastic as possible.  I know so many people my age (mid-60s!) who are already giving up on technology, and the problem is this:  if you lose a general sense of traction, it is very possible that you will lose all traction, and with so many things going "online" you will be dependent on others to do things for you, or shut out.  My mom gave up on turning on the computer and reading email about 5 years ago, and it is so much WORK for my sister to have to look up her email for her, click though the emails, and so on...to send an email to the last friends she has on this earth...   NOW, my mom was 92 years old when she threw in the towel, and so she gets a pass on this.  But at 65?  There's a lot of life that you're going to miss.  But when another relative just freaked out at using a cell phone because it had the word "cell" in it--she cost herself $50 a month for a land line when we would have added her to our cell plan for free--and she had to get a new phone that has (wait for it) a wireless handset.  She SHOUTS at anyone who even asks her if she has a computer and it is embarrassingly rude.  

I got hearing aids a couple of years ago.  They can feed Spotify right into my head.  It's wonderful!  But I had to learn how to work the Spotify software, know how to connect my bionic ears to Bluetooth and work the app to get connected to the TV.  ALL of these improve my quality of life.  But what is *also* wonderful is that my son and I share tunes back and forth on Spotify.  THAT gives us something to do together, and I appreciate that.  It's a connection.  

I want to be able to be sensible and to participate in life, and that involves technology.  This week I have been trying to learn how to use Trello, and my ds has put me on a test account so I can see how Slack works.  Just so I can know what CAN be done.  

All that said, I still don't think I can turn on my TV.  ;0)

This is where I am. I don't want to be afraid of technology and I'd like to be able to keep up with it. Sometimes that means I have to give up on preconceived notions and safety. Dh finally got a smartphone in March due to covid. He likes the options with it, but doesn't want them on his phone. That means I'm the one doing everything on my phone. When I ask him to look something up on Maps, he tells me he doesn't know how. I don't want to be like that. I want to function with tech.

We just downloaded Spotify for my mom while we were visiting her and she loves it! I put some music I thought she would like on a playlist and ds shared his playlist with her. She also has a hard time with Google Maps, but she's trying to use it.

I appreciate you're learning Trello and Slack. I don't know anything about them, but I admire your wherewithal! I sometimes would like a reason to learn whatever social media/platform, but sometimes the reasons come after I learn.

ETA: With Anki, look to see if there are other flashcards someone else created that you can use. My dd is in med school and has been able to use previously made Anki  flashcards for her studies. She said it's a huge timesaver!

 

Edited August 24, 2020 by wilrunner

[Jentrovert]

On 8/24/2020 at 12:19 PM, Slache said:

I don't do anything special. The upfront time investment is intense and by the time I had it down I didn't care to learn more. The time saved over time is worth it though. Maybe an hour a week. People definitely use them with VP/CC cards. I do use images, but that's drag and drop. If you search old threads there are amazing capabilities.

This is good to know. I recently took a look at it and was dismayed to find it will take a while to figure it out. Granted, it was late at night and I was tired, but it just looked like more than I want to tackle right now. I need to take another look.

[Slache]

1 hour ago, Jentrovert said:

This is good to know. I recently took a look at it and was dismayed to find it will take a while to figure it out. Granted, it was late at night and I was tired, but it just looked like more than I want to tackle right now. I need to take another look.

Yes. I don't go out of my way to recommend it because a lot of people struggle so much with the setup, including myself. It is so worth the time! I just wish it wasn't so hard to set up so that I could recommend it more.