New Episodes of Learning NOW in Barrington 220 One-Minute Spotlights

The Department of Technology & Innovation continues to produce our web series Learning NOW in Barrington 220 at www.youtube.com/learningnow220. 

Each episode highlights some of the ways Barrington 220 students are learning in one-minute stories about a particular lesson or activity. As a result, we hope to create a better understanding in the Barrington community about how students learn and how the classroom environment has changed with the addition of a technology device in the hands of every student, especially as we engage in distance learning. 

Here are the most recent episodes:

Barrington HS - Mr. Waxler & Mr. Ebel - Social Studies—Barrington High School Social Studies teacher Cary Waxler and Instructional Digital Age Learning (iDAL) Coach Chris Ebel team up and use a variety of online tools to work with students. After studying historical photos and primary source documents, students submitted argumentative theses based on a claim and research. Digital tools include Google Jamboard, Schoology, and an original virtual library design created in Google Slides.

Roslyn Road Elementary - Mr. Wemhoff - Grade 5—Mr. Jeremy Wemhoff, a Grade 5 teacher at Roslyn Road Elementary, is teaching his students about the three branches of U.S. government during distance learning. Students work together in small groups using Zoom Breakout Rooms and demonstrate learning by creating a video or a presentation. The group of students featured has chosen to create a video. They research the branches of government, record a video on iPad, and submit the clips using Google Drive to a group member who edits the individual parts into a single video.

Barrington HS - Joe Zimka - Graphic Arts—Students in Joe Zimka’s Graphic Arts 2 class at Barrington High School use Adobe Illustrator to design images that can be printed on vinyl and then heat-pressed onto fabric. This student designed her graphic at home while distance learning, scheduled a time, and visited the BHS graphic arts room to complete the project. Mr. Zimka taught the student to use professional, specialized equipment including a digital vinyl cutter and a heat press for this project.

If you or one of your peers would like to be featured on a future One-Minute Spotlight, please contact Ty Gorman at tgorman@barrington220.org and/or Matt Fuller at mfuller@barrington220.org.

Infinite Campus Virtual Training Videos Now Available!

In November 2020, Infinite Campus held their very first National Training Week (NTW) in a virtual format. Barrington 220 purchased access to the week's events for the entire district, and many took advantage of the sessions that were offered during the week. Almost all of the sessions were recorded, and Infinite Campus has made these videos and presentations accessible for the next couple of months starting today, December 11, 2020.

To access the Infinite Campus NTW training, visit this page, and click on a video to learn where to find the sessions and materials.

The information for accessing the videos is posted on Campus Passport, and Phil Hintz will also send an all-district email reminder. These new videos provide a great way for our district to participate in just-in-time or on-demand learning so that you will be able to not only learn and take the class on your own time, but also replay the learning as needed. 

New Look Coming for Teachers in Infinite Campus

Around January 18, 2021, Infinite Campus will be rolling out a new look to teacher portal pages—along with a couple of new features. This new look and set of features is a part of an overall Infinite Campus system upgrade so we wanted you to be aware as soon as we found out. I attended a preview webinar, captured some screen shots, and I would like to review these new screens now. 

First, when teachers login, you land on the Control Center landing page of the portal. Right now it is organized in what is called "Row-Based" organization as shown below for a middle school teacher and an elementary teacher:

Before Update Look Middle School / High School:

Before Update Look Elementary School:


After the update in January, the organization will switch to "Card-Based" organization where each period will be in it's own "Card" with it's own features, as seen below:

After Update (Middle School Example):

As you can see, each period has a card, and each card has the name and a default icon of a computer, as displayed on this Period 7 example here. Clicking on the cog-wheel in the corner of the card will give you the following screen where you can customize each card's look, including name, icon, and color:



You will notice that under each card there are two or three icons (Person, Paper, and Hand).

• Person icon—Take attendance for that class.
• Paper icon—Score an assignment right from that icon. 
• Hand icon—This new Questions feature that can be turned on or off for each class (1st through 6th period have it on, 7th and 8th have it off in this example). When this Questions feature is turned on for a class, students can ask a question of the teacher from their student portal, and you as a teacher can see that question and respond to it. In the example above, 5th period has the Hand icon with a red "1" on it. This indicates to the teacher that there is one unanswered question in that class. The teacher then can click on the hand, see the question, answer the question, and the student will be able to see the answer in a reply on their portal page. This is a nice feature that students can use to reach out to teachers with, especially during remote learning.

The teacher grade book has also had a couple of new features added to it as well. One is the ability to pre-schedule assignments by using an exact time of release for start and end date of an assignment. Another is the ability to include an assignment into grade calculation or not (especially good for field trip forms or textbook checkout that teachers like to keep track of in their grade books, but not necessarily give a grade for). Last, if you teach multiple sections of the same class and you give assignments that are either the same or similar for each class section, you can now copy the assignment to each class section that you want to copy it to, saving time in creating it for each class. This feature is shown below:



All in all, these new features are designed to make things just a bit easier for teachers and will hopefully bring some joy to the new year! A quick reference guide of these new changes and features is coming out on Friday, December 11, 2020, that will also include a video to demonstrate how to use and implement these new features. When that is released, I will send district wide email and include any links they provide to those resources as well.

As this calendar year comes to a close, I want to personally wish you and your families a very happy holiday season, and here's to better days ahead in 2021! See you next year!

Extended Instructional Technology Support Coming Soon

We know that teachers are working really hard right now and planning, grading, and student support don’t fit neatly into the regular work day. Many times teachers are planning lessons at night and on the weekends, and they often need tech help during that time. 

We are pleased to introduce extended instructional technology support that reflects these times. Starting the second week of January, Library Technology Assistants (LTAs) will be available during non-school hours. Each evening on Monday through Thursday, and during the afternoon on Saturday, one LTA will be available to answer questions and provide support via email. The LTA on call may not be the LTA at your building, but you’ll find that all Barrington 220 LTAs to be talented and helpful.

Each week, you will receive an email from me (Ty Gorman, tgorman@barrington220.org) with a schedule and a link to the LTA's email who is on-call during that time.

The schedule will be:

Mondays: 7:00 PM–9:00 PM

Tuesdays: 7:00 PM–9:00 PM

Wednesdays: 7:00 PM–9:00 PM

Thursdays: 7:00 PM–9:00 PM

Saturdays: 12:00 PM–4:00 PM

Emails received outside of these hours will be forwarded to your building LTA to be addressed the next school day.

New Zoom Features Improve Meeting Management

Zoom continues to update its platform and two new features were just released in the second week of December 2020.

Co-hosts now have the same breakout room management rights as the hosts. Co-hosts can assign students to breakout rooms, as well as start and end breakout room sessions. This feature is great for any classroom situations where classroom assistants, co-teachers, or other service providers are helping to run the class meeting.

Hosts and co-hosts can now move participants from breakout rooms to the main room. Prior to this update, the only way to bring students back to the main room was to end the breakout session for all students. Now, hosts can call specific students back to the main room. This feature works great for small-group work, station rotations, or individual conferences with students during independent work time.

Read more about the new features in the Zoom Help Center. 

Use Mixtapes to Share Flipgrid Videos with Parents

Are you looking for great ways to share your Flipgrid videos with parents? Creating Mixtapes in Flipgrid allows teachers to share "view only" versions of student recordings. Educators can choose any video from and grid or topic.

Begin by logging in to Flipgrid.

Click Mixtapes from the dropdown menu at the top.

Click Create Mixtape.



Enter a title for the Mixtape.

Use the default join code, or create your own. (The + sign indicates that this is a Mixtape.)

Provide a Description if desired.



Add a password if desired.



Click Create MixTape.



Click Actions on the right side of the video you would like to add.

Click Add to MixTapes.




Add video(s) to an existing Mixtape or Create a Mixtape. Click Add.

Click Share to create a view only link for parents, or publish to social media, Seesaw, Google etc.





Click here to learn even more about Mixtapes.

Strategies to Help Students Engage in Remote Learning

As remote learning becomes more comfortable and routine, teachers are finding ways to motivate their students and raise the level of instruction like never before. One struggle that persists is getting kids to participate in Zoom sessions to the same level they might in class. Whether it's getting kids to turn on their cameras, speak up, or simply stay on the call, some students find it difficult to stay engaged.

Recently, I asked Barrington 220 teachers to share their best discoveries and strategies for getting kids to participate and engage in learning while on a video conference.

Here are the best lessons we’ve learned so far about getting kids to engage in remote learning. (Responses have been edited for clarity.)

1. Teaching and learning is now and will forever be predicated on building strong relationships with students. Students who respect their teacher and believe that their teacher cares about them will engage in learning.

Elementary teacher: Everyday I start with a question of the day. Today it is, "What is your favorite cookie?" It takes 10 minutes each day, but I feel like it's valuable because it gets the kids comfortable talking and makes them feel connected. By the time I have started the lesson, every kid has already talked in class. I would take 30 minutes of quality instruction where students are engaged over 40 minutes of 'meh' any day.

Elementary teacher: My best advice is to take time to talk and get to know your students. Then they feel comfortable. To do this, I put my entire class in separate breakouts rooms. Then I visit with each person. I have found when kids know it is just the two of us in the breakout room, they will turn on their cameras and talk to me. It is all about building relationships and getting them to trust you.

Middle School teacher: I am also learning more about my students and making connections. I write down interesting pieces of information I learn. It makes me feel like I know them.

Middle school teacher: I have found that doing personal polls in Zoom at the beginning brings kids in and gets them engaged. I then share the results with the class and we have a quick two-minute discussion about it. It just makes it more personal, and the kids like talking about themselves and each other.

2. Students may first need external incentives to engage before wanting to do it on their own. Once students have engaged in distance learning, they tend to find the experience positive, and want to do it more. But they don’t always get that first taste willingly. Some teachers have found that incentivizing students to participate at first, leads to willing participation later.

Elementary teacher: At the beginning of class I have been playing a "mystery sound of the day" only once I see all the videos. I reveal the answer at the end of the session to try and keep attendance for the whole time.

Elementary teacher: On the last day of school in the spring, I told the students there would be a mystery guest. I had invited their former extended teacher to join our Zoom. I think it definitely encouraged kids to join to see who it would be. A little mystery gets their attention.

Middle school teacher: One way I think helps students stay engaged is that each student has a job during Zoom. I think this makes them feel responsible for part of the meeting.

3. Students may need to start slowly. Some teachers have found success by providing opportunities for students to talk to just the teacher, or in small groups at first before asking them to engage a larger group.

High School teacher: The most success I have had is putting the kids into their own breakout room and popping in to talk to them individually while everyone else works on an asynchronous activity. I have noticed that my freshmen are starting to open up more—even through chat. I try to remember little things about them that they told me prior, and the comfort is starting to get better.

Elementary teacher: I find it helpful to assign students a long-term teammate that they work with over the course of several weeks. Students share a Google Slide with this teammate, include a picture of themselves, and as tasks are assigned, they are each other's advocate in learning.

4. Using available tech tools to your advantage can also get kids to want to participate. It may be hard for a student to turn on their camera and speak up, but it’s an easier introduction to allow them to use the chat, answer a poll question, or message through Schoology. Students who participate digitally are likely to grow in their comfort with participating in other ways as well.

Elementary teacher: One of the ideas that has worked great for students in Grades 3–5 in STEM is when we ask students to "flood the chat." We get a lot of thoughtful responses, and the teacher can share out. Older students will sometimes even piggyback off of another comment or ask a clarifying question in the chat.

High School teacher: I set up a poll that asks students a simple question like how they are doing as a bellringer, and then go over the responses as a class. I ask them a question and have them respond with an emoji in the chat, or I ask them to respond in the chat with a written response privately to me, read answers anonymously, and then have a class discussion.

Barrington 220 Joins Cybersecurity Group MS-ISAC

Barrington 220 has joined the Multi-State Information Sharing and Analysis Center (MS-ISAC) which now has over 10,000 state, local, tribal, and other government agencies within their ranks. This not-for-profit organization is backed by the Department of Homeland Security and provides a wealth of cybersecurity resources for their members. Here is their mission statement:

“The mission of the MS-ISAC is to improve the overall cybersecurity posture of the nation's state, local, tribal and territorial governments through focused cyber threat prevention, protection, response, and recovery”

In line with our School Board's goals and industry best practices, Barrington 220 continuously reviews our cybersecurity posture, based on the continuously changing threat landscape.

It Takes a Village: Barrington 220 Staff and Families Work Together During Distance Learning

With the move to distance learning this year, students are spending more time with their devices than ever. With that comes an increased possibility of students stumbling across content that may be distracting or inappropriate for them. The term “inappropriate” means different things to different people and will likely be defined depending on variables such as household rules or the age of the child.

We hear from parents who are concerned about adult content, social media, advertising, and online gaming that may be distracting their child from learning or, even worse, exposing children inappropriate or dangerous content. Parents and caregivers may find it difficult to stay on top of what children are doing while online and may not know what steps they can take to prevent students from viewing inappropriate content.

With a little knowledge, Barrington 220 staff members and parents can work together to help students navigate the difficulties of digital learning at home. Here are a few things all of us should know as we work together to keep our students safe and engaged.

Network Filters

Our district Internet content filters function on the Barrington 220 network and do not extend to devices when they are not connected to a district Wi-Fi access point. In other words, when students are in a school, our network filters block inappropriate content, but these filters do not follow the student home. When a student is using a district device at home, whatever filters the family has established through their home Internet provider are used. If a family has not established Internet filters at home, the student would be able to access potentially inappropriate content on their device while at home. 

Most Internet providers allow parents to easily establish and maintain filters and restrictions. Parents are encouraged to contact their home Internet provider(s) to find out how to set up filters on their home network. This may include contacting not provider(s) of the Internet delivered through Wi-Fi systems, but also mobile phone and "hotspot" Internet providers.  

Screen Time

Even with network filters set up at home, some parents may find that their student continues to be distracted by other things. After all, some online games, YouTube videos, or social media platforms may be deemed appropriate, but may cause issues because of the time of day or amount of time students are choosing to access them. In this case, parents may use the Screen Time feature available on the iPad. 

Screen Time allows parents to set restrictions, impose time limits, and establish rules for when and how long a student can use specific apps. Screen Time is completely customizable to a parent’s household rules. Parents can set time limits for specific apps and websites, or they can set downtime to shut down access at certain times of day. 

Parents can also use Screen Time to establish filters and restrictions that reflect the desired level of protection for each child. Older students may be given more access and freedom than younger ones. Any Screen Time rules that a parent establishes are protected by a passcode so students can’t change the settings once they are in place. Step-by step instructions on how to set up and use Screen Time can be found on the One to World page of the District website.

Self Service App

Barrington 220 offers over 300 apps and subscriptions to students. These apps have been vetted for compatibility, privacy, security, and instruction. All apps that have been approved for use by Barrington 220 are available in a Self Service app on the district iPad. Think of the Self Service app as a district-approved app store. 

Students in Grades PreK–8 only have access to apps in Self Service and do not have access to Apple’s App Store. However, high school students have access to the Apple App Store and may download apps in addition to the approved apps in Self Service. 

Parents can use Screen Time to limit access to the App Store app and/or place guidelines on the types of apps that can be downloaded.

More Resources

Barrington 220 offers resources and information to help parents navigate student device use. Parent will find step-by-step guides to set up Screen Time, connect to Schoology and Seesaw, and recordings of webinars on a variety of technology-related topics. Parents are encouraged to contact teachers, Library/Technology Assistants (LTAs) in building libraries, or other trusted staff members if they need more information on how to keep their student safe and engaged while in distance learning mode.

One to World iPad Program: Parent Information—The official District home for information about the One to World program, parents can access this page for resources related to Internet safety, Barrington 220 digital tools, cyberbullying, and more.

A Parent’s Guide to Distance Learning—Here parents will find a collection of webinars, resources, and Internet content related to device distraction and other important topics.

Local Districts Deal with Cybersecurity Attacks

You may have heard on the news that several local school districts have recently experienced cybersecurity attacks affecting different systems. So far the districts have included 219, 207, 211, 214, and 113. The Barrington 220 tech team and administration have been in communication with these districts and others, and we are working together to prevent future cybersecurity attacks.

Although Barrington 220 has not been affected at this time, these attacks on our neighbors are a reminder to us to continue to be aware of potential phishing attacks and report them immediately. 

As a reminder, here are some of the things to remember that may indicate you have a phishing email:

• Is it a legitimate message? 
• Were you expecting the message?
• Is the message from who you think it is? 
• Does the message convey a sense of urgency? 
• Was the message sent to a group of people, including some you do not know? 
• Was the message sent at an odd time of day? 
• Does the message make you uneasy?

If you encounter a phishing message, please submit it to Google so we can act upon it. Click the three vertical dots (the “snowman” as some call it) in the upper-right corner of your Gmail browser window and click Report phishing.

Meanwhile, the Barrington 220 tech team is actively reviewing our systems based upon the information we are learning from affected districts. If additional mitigation efforts are required, we will apply them to our systems and contact staff if necessary.

Tech & Innovation Welcomes Leslie Seelye & Jake Benz!

Please join the Department of Technology & Innovation in welcoming our two newest members to the team, Leslie Seelye and Jake Benz!

Prior to joining the team as a Technology Support Associate, Leslie Seelye was a Software Requisition and Fulfillment Analyst at Discover Financial in the Technology department. Before Discover, she spent a couple of decades at Siemens in the Accounting and Technology departments.

Leslie has three children and enjoys outdoor activities including kayaking, bicycling, fitness, and long walks with her dogs Puck, Bailey, and Lola.

Jake Benz came from Apple where he served as a Genius at the Deer Park store. He spent three years in various roles from sales, to administration, to warehouse. Jake was also a Mac Technician and trained new hires.

Outside of Apple, Jake spent 15 years playing hockey and still loves to watch and play the sport. One day he hopes to get his coaching license. Jake spends a great deal of time programming and learning about technology, even when not at work. Technology has always been his passion along with the rest of the science field.

Key's Quick Tips: Share Only a Portion of Your Screen in Zoom's Advanced Settings

Key's Quick Tips are provided by Kelly Key, Assistive Technology Coordinator for Barrington 220. Each month, Kelly Key features a tool to support our students.

Hot off the press...Share Only a Portion of your screen in Zoom's Advanced Settings!

When teaching in Zoom:

• Do you have more than one window open, but just want to show a portion of your screen to students? 
• Do you have an interactive slides presentation that needs to stay out of presentation mode to make interactive, but you only want your students to see the slide you are on? 
• Do you want to zoom in on a math problem?
• Show students specific text in a book?
• Support a student with a vision impairment by only showing the content you are talking about at the time? 

...Then use the advanced Portion of a Screen feature in Zoom!

This is also a great way to support students with vision impairments, or students with attention difficulties. It allows you to target specific areas on your screen that the students will only see!

Directions

Screen Share
 

Advanced

Portion of Screen

Adjust the Green Box to show only what you would like. While you are adjusting, it will not show what is on the screen.

Students will now only see what is inside the green box.


This is very easy to do throughout your lesson!

Help Parents Help Students with Distance Learning

As Barrington 220 and other districts continue in distance learning mode as the COVID-19 pandemic continues, teachers may be getting new requests from parents about ways to assist their children in distance learning.

At the beginning of the school year, Barrington 220 offered several sessions in each of five learning modules in our Distance Learning Resources for Parents series. Those resources are still available on a dedicated website for access any time.

Distance Learning Resources for Parents full website

Module One: Preparing for Distance Learning

Module Two: Introduction to Schoology

Module Three: Seesaw for Families

Module Four: Managing Technology at Home

Module Five: Navigating Social & Emotional Needs (includes K-5 and 6-12 versions)

Barrington 220’s Blended Learning Program Turns 5!

The 2020–21 school year marks the five-year program anniversary of the Barrington 220 Blended Learning program. Ty Gorman, Director of Instructional Technology, has produced a short video featuring a few teachers and students to commemorate this milestone.

Using our district’s adopted blended learning definition, blended courses include both online and face-to-face learning opportunities with teachers that include student choice of time, pace, path, and/or place for learning experiences. Barrington 220 teachers use blended learning strategies to personalize the learning experiences for students based upon individual needs. 

The Blended Learning program in Barrington 220 continues to grow. Barrington High School currently offers 135 sections of blended learning courses taught by 82 teachers who have completed blended learning cohort training. Seventeen new blended teachers completed the cohort in 2020. During the past five years of the Blended Learning program, over 5,000 students have participated in blended learning courses and activities. During the 2020–21 school year, approximately 1,800 BHS students are currently enrolled in a blended course. 

Previous blended learning experience among Barrington 220 teachers at elementary, middle, and high school levels had a positive impact on both distance and hybrid learning since blended strategies are well suited for distance and hybrid learning modes. New formal blended learning teacher cohorts have paused since most Barrington 220 teachers are learning to use blended learning strategies as part of our distance learning professional development. Barrington High School currently offers over 80 blended learning courses. 

Moving forward, Barrington 220 will continue to offer formal blended learning teacher cohorts after the pandemic—enhanced by what we learned using blended learning strategies in distance and hybrid learning modes. We will continue to add high school blended courses (and sections) and expand blended modes at middle and elementary levels.

Catch Up on Learning NOW in Barrington 220 One-Minute Spotlights

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, the Department of Technology & Innovation has continued to produce our web series Learning NOW in Barrington 220 at www.youtube.com/learningnow220. Each episode highlights some of the ways Barrington 220 students are learning in one-minute stories about a particular lesson or activity. The series aims to create a better understanding in the Barrington community about how students learn and how the classroom environment has changed with the addition of a technology device in the hands of every student. 

If you have not seen them already, please take this opportunity to catch upon our One-Minute Spotlight videos that showcase distance, hybrid, and concurrent learning across the district:

Hybrid Learning: Barrington Middle School–Prairie - Ms. Giordano - Social Studies—BMS–Prairie teacher Katelynn Giordano uses station rotation to address the issue of divided attention while teaching in a concurrent classroom.

Hybrid Learning: Barrington High School - Mr. Kaiser - Woods—BHS Woods Teacher Jason Kaiser spent the beginning of the school year in distance learning while he taught his students about safety and planned projects. Later in the quarter, small groups of his advanced woods students visited the wood shop and used tools and materials to create projects.

Distance Learning: Countryside Elementary - Ms. Juengling—Countryside teacher Marie Juengling uses the Jamboard online interactive whiteboard and Zoom Breakout Rooms during distance learning to allow her students to think, debate, and develop ideas.

Distance Learning: Lines Elementary - Ms. Dowdy—Lines Grade 3 teacher Sarah Dowdy works with her class using Zoom video conferencing to teach a math lesson about parallel lines.

Concurrent Learning: Barrington High School - Mr. Pemberton - Choir—BHS Director of Choirs Brandon Pemberton conducts a choir rehearsal with some students live on the BHS outdoor stage and some students attending on Zoom in a concurrent classroom mode. 

Concurrent Learning: Barrington Middle School–Prairie - Ms. Canace & Ms. Aliperta—Students in Ms. Canace’s and Ms. Aliperta’s classes at BMS–Prairie learn in a concurrent classroom environment—where some students are in-person in a socially distanced classroom and some students are learning from home on Zoom.

Finally, if you or one of your peers would like to be featured on a future One-Minute Spotlight, please contact Ty Gorman at tgorman@barrington220.org and/or Matt Fuller at mfuller@barrington220.org.

Getting Ready for Hybrid Learning

As Barrington 220 prepares to move to a hybrid learning model in October 2020, many teachers have started to wonder what their classroom might look like when trying to teach some students in person and other students at home. One name for this model is concurrent classroom, and using this model for the first time may be challenging for teachers and students. However, concurrent classrooms also offer some exciting opportunities. Primarily, there are two major difficulties to address when planning for concurrent instruction, attention and variety,

The Problem of Attention

It’s very difficult to give attention, support, and feedback to students in different locations. Having some students on a video conference and other students in person means that a number of students are not getting your full attention at any one time. Teachers may initially find it challenging to facilitate learning, monitor the room, and monitor Zoom all at the same time.

The Problem of Variety 

Experienced teachers understand that using a variety of modalities during a lesson is vital to engaging students. A concurrent classroom may present a unique set of challenges, as transitions may be difficult for a teacher using this model.

Barrington 220 teachers have made many breakthroughs during distance learning, and much of what we’ve learned about new ways to facilitate high-level learning will carry over to the hybrid model.

Recently, Barrington High School iDAL coach, Jeff Spella, and Assistant Principal, Ben Rodriguez, worked to identify the instructional modalities that might make the most sense when teaching students in person and at home. We have identified six modalities that worked effectively in a concurrent classroom setting using our technology devices and services. We borrowed a classroom at the high school (thanks Lauren Schoepp) and tested them out. Here is a brief description of the modalities we tried, followed by some thoughts on what we learned. 

Modality	Description	Platform	Audio setup	Video setup
Whole Group
Discussion	All students participate in a class discussion.	Zoom	In-class students join without audio. Teacher connects to a projection device.	Teacher shares screen and projects
Direct Instruction	The teacher introduces, demonstrates, or models a concept or skill.	Zoom	In-class students join without audio. Teacher connects to a projection device	Teacher shares screen and projects
Small Group
Location-specific conferencing	Groups of in-person students and at-home students meet separately.	Zoom and in-person	Remote students will join with audio. In-person students will mute.	Remote students join with video. In-person students will have cameras off.
Mixed-location conferencing	Groups of in-person and at-home students meet together.	Google Hangouts	Head-phones are recommended for in-person students.	Students manage video settings
Small Group - Digital Collaboration	Groups of in-person and at-home students collaborate without video conferencing.	Padlet, Google Docs, JamBoard, etc.	none	none
Asynchronous
Individual or Group	Self-directed learning.	Multiple	none	none

Here is what we learned from our experience.

Whole-Group Discussion

• At-home students could hear surprisingly well when only the teacher’s computer was set up for sound. The teacher’s mic and projector’s speaker were sufficient for sound. 
• When leading a group discussion, the teacher may have all in-person students on a Zoom conference or participating through the teacher’s device. The only drawback we could see to not having in-person students on the Zoom is that at-home students can’t see them. 
• If in-person students are on the Zoom, they should join without audio by selecting “cancel” when prompted to join with audio. The microphone and speakers on the teacher’s device will be the only one’s using audio in the room. 
• The teacher’s microphone should be enough to pick up everyone in the room, but enabling audio on a second or third student device may be needed depending on the size of the room. In this case, the few students who join with audio should mute during the session unless someone near to them is speaking. This will likely not be needed in most classrooms, but might be effective in a larger space such as a library or gym. 
• To hear at-home students, the teacher should project to the SMART Board or other large screen in the room. 

Whole-Group Direct Instruction

• Two teacher devices are recommended for this setup: one device for managing the Zoom, and one for delivering the lesson. After several trials, it seems to work best to have a MacBook Air laptop as the Zoom device, and an iPad as the teaching device.
• On the Zoom device, the teacher should follow the same setup as “whole group discussion”.
• The teacher should then join the conference on a second device as a co-host (iPad is recommended) and screen-share to teach from this device. By projecting from the MacBook Air laptop and screen sharing from iPad, you are essentially projecting from your teaching device, giving you more flexibility.
• If a teacher is doing a live demonstration, it is recommended that you use an digital whiteboard rather than the physical whiteboard in the room. Trials showed us that at-home students will see much better with a digital whiteboard such as Google’s Jamboard.

Small-Group Conferencing

• Location-specific conferencing seems to be the easiest to set up. In this modality, in-person students meet with other in-person students, and at-home students meet with other at-home students.
• The teacher can use Zoom to manage Breakout Rooms for at-home students while physically monitoring discussions in class. In-person students should temporarily leave the Zoom during these discussions.
• For mixed-location group conferencing, we recommend Google Hangouts. The audio logistics for a Zoom proved difficult to manage. If teachers want to have in-class students to meet with at-home students in small groups, they should leave the Zoom and initiate their own Google Hangouts. This makes it easier for students to connect and manage their conversations, but makes it harder for teachers to monitor at-home students. While teachers will see the reactions of the in-class students, they will not see or hear the at-home students.

New and Expanded Apps and Subscriptions

The Department of Technology and Innovation is always listening to our students and teachers with the goal of providing the best possible level of service when it comes to apps, subscriptions, and digital curriculum. For the 2020–21 school year, we have expanded some of our existing apps and purchased new subscriptions to better meet the ever-changing needs of our students and staff.

Here are some highlights of what you can expect in the 2020–21 school year:

The middle school and high school teacher librarians are proud to introduce RB Digital for middle school and high school. RB Digital is a magazine and newspaper service that offers popular titles from around the world in a Netflix-style interface. Titles are available in multiple languages and provide our staff and students the opportunity to quickly and easily get a variety of global perspectives on the topics of the day. In addition, the move to RB Digital will replace a variety of subscription services and consolidate them into one, easy-to-use platform.

IXL allows students to practice essential skills in math and language arts in a self-paced and personalized format. Students choose to work on skills based on their current level of mastery and understanding and receive real-time feedback on their progress. IXL has been a popular option for Barrington 220 students in recent years with heavy traffic on the platform. For 2020–21, we have expanded our IXL subscription to include Kindergarten bringing our use of this service K–8. This expansion will serve as an additional choice for our Kindergarten students and will not replace any of our current options for digital skills practice.

The free version of Padlet has grown in popularity in our district over the past several years. Padlet allows students and teachers to create an online “wall” to post work, ideas, videos, links, and other information in a format that allows users to collaborate and communicate in a dynamic open forum. For 2020–21, we have purchased the Padlet Backpack version which allows teachers to create an unlimited number of Padlet walls and increases privacy and security for students. With Padlet Backpack, teachers will have better options for managing the flow of information and be able to upload large files in a more controlled and safer environment.

Explain Everything is an easy-to-use design, screencasting, and interactive whiteboard tool that lets students demonstrate their thinking, communicate, share ideas, and brainstorm in a dynamic and collaborative environment. Students can write, record, import, and create in a variety of ways on this platform. Our district has had Explain Everything for our K–-8 iPad users for several years. Starting in the 2020–21 school year, we have shifted our Explain Everything subscription from K–8 to 3–12. This move is a response to the shift to iPad at the high school and responds to the low usage we noticed among our K–3 students.

As always, if you have an idea for an app or subscription that you would like to see used with our students, please complete the Subscription and App Request Form by clicking bit.ly/220SARF.

Guidelines for Cleaning Barrington 220 Devices

Over the last few months we've received some questions about how to clean our Barrington 220 devices. Cleaning them often is not only a good idea to keep yourself safe from potential illness, but it also keeps our devices looking new and performing well. Below are guidelines for cleaning our devices, adapted from Apple.

Is it OK to use a disinfectant on my Apple product? 

Using a 70 percent isopropyl alcohol wipe or Clorox Disinfecting Wipes, you may gently wipe the hard, nonporous surfaces of your Apple product, such as the display, keyboard, or other exterior surfaces. 

iPad and iPhone

• Unplug all cables and turn off iPad/iPhone (press and hold the Sleep/Wake button, and then slide the onscreen slider).
• Use a soft, slightly damp, lint-free cloth. Avoid getting moisture in openings.
• Don't use window cleaners, household cleaners, compressed air, aerosol sprays, solvents, ammonia, abrasives, or cleaners containing hydrogen peroxide to clean iPad/iPhone.
• iPad/iPhone has an oleophobic coating on the screen (a coating that resists oil). Wipe the iPad/iPhone screen with a soft, lint-free cloth to remove oil left by your hands.

The ability of this coating to repel oil will diminish over time with normal usage, and rubbing the screen with an abrasive material will further diminish its effect and might scratch your screen.

Apple Pencil and Logitech Crayon

• To clean your Apple Pencil/Logitech Crayon, use a soft, slightly damp, lint-free cloth.
• With the damp cloth, wipe yourApple Pencil/Logitech Crayon from the tip end—but not the tip itself—toward the other end of your Apple Pencil/Logitech Crayon.
• Don’t allow moisture to get inside the seam between the tip and the body of yourApple Pencil/Logitech Crayon.

MacBook Laptops

• To clean the screen on your MacBook, MacBook Pro, or MacBook Air, first shut down the computer and unplug the power adapter.
• Dampen a soft, lint-free cloth with water only, then use it to clean the computer's screen.
• When cleaning the outside of your laptop, first shut down your computer and unplug the power adapter.
• Then use a damp, soft, lint-free cloth to clean the computer's exterior.
• Avoid getting moisture in any openings. Do not spray liquid directly on the computer.
• Don't use aerosol sprays, solvents, abrasives, or cleaners containing hydrogen peroxide that might damage the finish.

If liquid makes its way inside your Apple product, get help from Barrington 220 Tech Support 224-655-1500, or dial x.1500 inside the district.

You can also find this article in the Barrington 220 Knowledge Base. 

Email Security Awareness: Think Before You Click!

Throughout this pandemic, cybersecurity threat actors have been ramping up their game, and email phishing messages are on the rise. Please be careful with all email messages and think before you click.

Security awareness provider Knowbe4, defines Phishing as follows: "Phishing is the process of attempting to acquire sensitive information such as usernames, passwords and credit card details by masquerading as a trustworthy entity using bulk email which tries to evade spam filters."

For example, you receive a message from your principal and he or she asks, “Do you have a minute?” Did this message really come from your principal? Did you check, or did you take the bait and respond?

Think before you click on that next email message! Is it a legitimate message? Were you expecting it? Is the message truly from who you think it is? Does it convey a sense of urgency? Was it sent to a group of people, including some that you do not know? Was it sent at an odd time of day? Does it make you uneasy?

If you do run into a message that is truly a phishing message, please submit this message to Google. Click the three vertical dots (the "snowman" as it is called in some of our schools) in the upper-right corner of your Gmail browser window:

There are plenty of threat actors around the globe who would gladly take advantage of others. Do not be a victim of email fraud. Think about that next click as you hurry through email messages.

Seesaw & Schoology in Barrington 220

The recent extended distance learning experience has revealed opportunities to improve our District’s user experience when it comes to accessing digital learning materials. Currently, families with multiple students at different grade levels access a wide variety of platforms in order to gather materials, submit evidence of learning, and communicate with teachers. 

Feedback from recent parent and student surveys suggested that this contributed to student and parent frustration, occasional breakdowns in communication, and in some cases, assignments being missed or forgotten. A more universal approach to digital learning management improves these areas for our families.

In 2016, Schoology was adopted as the primary Learning Management System for K–12 teachers in the district. Starting in the 2020–21 school year, PK–Grade 3 teachers will use Seesaw and Grade 4–12 teachers will use Schoology as their primary launching point for digital learning management. This will create a single access point for digital learning materials at each grade level for all students and parents throughout the district. This move does not preclude teachers from continuing to use a variety of digital learning tools, this merely creates a clear and predictable starting point for students at a given grade level.

	Seesaw	Schoology
Grade Level	Grades Pre K–3	Grades 4–12
Purpose	Seesaw is a digital portfolio tool intended to give students a place to create, submit, and share their learning. The simplicity of SeeSaw provides an easy introduction into digital learning for our youngest students.	Schoology is a robust learning management system intended to serve as a digital classroom. Students can access resources, submit assignments, and receive grades and feedback.
Communication	Communication is among the teacher, student, and parent.	Communication is between the teacher and student.
Parent Interaction	After setting up an account, parents can view and comment on their students' work. They can receive notifications and announcements that pertain to their students.	After setting up an account, parents can “shadow” their student, seeing only what their student sees. They can receive notifications and reminders just like their student does. They cannot interact with the platform.
Gradebook	Seesaw allows the teacher to provide comments and feedback but is not a platform for grading student work.	Schoology has a fully functional gradebook that integrates with Infinite Campus.

A vast collection of training materials for both Schoology and Seesaw already exist that have been created by the product support teams for each platform and by our own Library Technology Assistants (LTAs) and District Technology Assistant. The Instructional Technology team provides ongoing training on these systems.

Seesaw Training and PD

Schoology Training and PD