Canva was introduced to me just last week in one of my classes. I was aware of Canva prior to this, and if I recall correctly, I assisted a co-worker in creating a poster some time ago. Recently, a classmate suggested that we use Canva for our discussion boards, and I agreed, as I am eager to improve my skills with the platform. My classmate shared a link, and I found a discussion board ready for me to contribute. Initially, the various features were quite overwhelming; however, after engaging with them for a while, I was able to edit, add text boxes, and comment on other people's posts. One cool feature is that I can save my work and edit the post at my convenience from another computer. I also found it interesting to see when my classmates were commenting on other posts, which reminded me of Google Docs. I intend to experiment with this tool with my students next week, creating a similar setup for them to collaborate and share their learning ideas. Since my students often rely on spelling assistance provided by their iPads, I need to determine whether this feature is available on Canva. If this is not feasible, I will need to consult with our Technology department to determine whether this feature can be implemented. This would be the only disadvantage for my students with dyslexia. However, I could also have students utilize the video feature of Canva and collaborate by recording themselves instead of writing about it.

Bark is an application designed to monitor school-issued accounts at no cost. Staff members, primarily Assistant Principals and Principals, receive alerts when students may be at risk online. The advanced AI technology scans students' Google and Microsoft accounts, including chats, emails, and files, for potential issues such as threats of violence and cyberbullying. Alerts are then sent immediately to the Assistant Principal or Principal to intervene. Additionally, the parent portal feature communicates alerts to parents. Bark also offers a premium feature called "Bark for School+." By upgrading to School+, schools gain access to 24/7 emergency notifications and the ability to implement software that prevents the sharing of inappropriate images. Furthermore, Bark allows schools to manage the websites that students can access by utilizing a web filter, which can restrict not only specific sites but also entire categories.

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This week I have been working closely with one of the Assistant Principals and he taught me how to run reports for my students. Unfortunately, not all teachers have access to Bark. I was able to generate reports for each student, which gave me insights of their online activities. An advantage of my school district using Bark is that it preserves bandwidth, ensuring that it does not negatively impacts network performance. Overall, Bark is an essential tool for maintaining student safety and fostering a positive learning environment on campus, particularly given the vast number of websites that students might access out of curiosity or by accident. Moving forward, I will be using Bark along with my supervisor to gain more knowledge and strategies as to how to help my students stay safe. This is also a great tool to teach students of the dangers of the internet. 

GoGuardian, similar to Bark, is an application designed to enhance online safety and security for all students. Administrators have the ability to easily customize alerts to monitor activities and adjust notification frequency. A  benefit of GoGuardian is its timely alerts, which provide details regarding events, enabling staff to assess risk levels and take appropriate action.

GoGuardian monitors online activity across all students' devices, including search engines, web applications, Gmail, and more, to proactively identify concerning behavior. 

This week, I began utilizing the reporting feature with my administrator. GoGuardian allows administrators to generate reports either by individual students or by a group of students. The report I ran included columns for the title of the website, URL, date, time, type of website, and the duration the student spent on each site. After analyzing the report, I gained valuable information about my student, discovering that he has an interest in sports and spends a lot of time watching baseball highlights. Knowing my student's interests will help me continue to build relationships. 

However, one drawback of GoGuardian is that it is designed solely for administrators. As a result, if I wish to monitor my students' online searches throughout the day, I need to reach out to my administrator for help. Additionally, while GoGuardian does display the websites or video URLs that students are accessing, it does not provide images. To view the specific links students were searching, I had to copy and paste them into a separate browser window

Parent Square is a new application that our district has implemented for the current school year. This application helps with communication with parents and staff members and is designed for K-12 students. The mass notification feature that connects with parents is an excellent tool for enhancing relationships with both parents and students. Messages can be sent individually or in groups, and templates, including translations, can be completed in advance. Broadcast messages can be sent via SMS, email, web, and even voice. One of the most utilized features for communicating with parents is the translation capability, which fosters improved communication between parents and educators. Additionally, the feature that allows staff-only communication is particularly beneficial for organizing events that all staff members can access. For instance, if a field trip is planned for the entire 4th-grade team, a new event can be created in the app, allowing others to view all the event details. The application also serves as a platform for sending immediate emergency notifications, such as fire drill alerts. 

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I started using Parent Square about 4 weeks ago,  I was hesitant because I was not trained on how to utilize the application. However, after the training, I was able to start sending messages to parents about how their student is doing in my Dyslexia class. In my opinion, the application is easy and user friendly when it's being opened from a computer desktop, however, the application can be a bit difficult to navigate because of all the features being on one side of the screen. Another downside of the application is that not many parents are trained on how to use the application, therefore, communication may not be as efficient as my school wants it to be. 

I had the opportunity to use Pear Deck during a professional development session I attended in Region 4. Although the session was not specifically focused on Pear Deck, the presenter utilized this tool to assess our prior knowledge before the main content began. This was my first time using the application, which I found quite interesting. It was user-friendly, and the presenter made the experience engaging. We simply needed to enter a code to access the lesson, which then appeared on our devices. This was one of the quickest methods I have logged into a lesson.

After conducting my own research on this application this week, I chose to implement it with my students. While I was unable to transfer the curriculum to the app due to copyright restrictions, I successfully delivered a brief lesson on prefixes (fore-, pre-, and post-). My students were excited to engage with this technology, as I don't typically incorporate technology into my lessons. 

With the exception of two students, everyone was actively involved in the activity. Unfortunately, the two students struggled because the application did not have a Text-To-Speech feature available for them, which they rely on for most assignments. Despite this limitation, I was able to read the content to them so they could still participate in the lesson.