Tag: Class Dojo

Education, K-5, Teaching Tools, Videos

Empathy Series

Terri Eichholz

Last year, Class Dojo produced a series of short animated videos that taught about what it means to have a Growth Mindset. Yesterday,  they released the first video in their new “Empathy” series, with two more expected during October.  Each video is around 4 minutes long and includes a discussion guide that also has suggestions for carrying on the conversation at home.

My elementary students enjoyed the mindset videos from Class Dojo last year, and even ask to watch them again.  Since empathy is part of the Design Thinking process, and something we regularly discuss in our GT classes, I definitely plan to show this series as well.

If you want to delve more into teaching empathy, Joelle Trayers has a plethora of posts that include picture book suggestions and activities on the topic.

Screen shot from Class Dojo video, Empathy #1
Screen shot from Class Dojo video, Empathy #1
Apps, Education, K-12, Motivation, Teaching Tools, Websites

Class Dojo App

Terri Eichholz

 

A little less than a year ago, I reviewed a site called Class Dojo, a free website that teachers can use as a tool for behavior management.  You can see my original review here.  Now, Class Dojo is offering an app for iDevices (with an Android app on its way).  Since my original review, Class Dojo has now added features for parents and students to access the accounts as well.  When students access it, they can create their own avatar, which will easily keep them occupied for awhile!  (Please be aware that, for the students to register, they must enter their birthdate and an e-mail address.  If the birthdate reflects that the student is younger than 13, than the prompt asks for a parent’s e-mail address, so permission can be given for the child to have an account.)  As far as I can tell, Class Dojo is planning a portal for parents to view their children’s progress, as well, but it does not seem to be up and running yet.  Class Dojo is a fun and useful tool for teachers that seems to be getting more robust.  Hopefully, it will continue to be free!

Behavior, K-5, Teaching Tools, Websites

Class Dojo

Terri Eichholz

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UPDATE 9/23/12:  Class Dojo now has an app that allows you to easily access your classes to add and subtract points from your iOS mobile device.  Click here for more info!

Class Dojo is a website that also has a mobile platform, meaning that you can access it from a classroom computer, laptop, smartphone, or any other device with Internet access. The purpose of this site is behavior management, and there are several features that would make this a great teacher tool. Once you receive the link (you need to enter your email in order to obtain a free account), you can then enter the names of your students. If you have multiple classes, you can enter each one separately. To increase the appeal to the students, you can even choose an avatar for each individual name. Then, you can type in the names of the targeted behaviors you would like to reward. There is also a column for negative behaviors.

Once you have everything set up, it is a simple matter to click the mouse or tap a screen every time a behavior is observed. The site keeps track of each student’s tally, and you can even print out a report of the class behavior or each student’s performance.

This is a great site for classroom management, making it easy to differentiate and to motivate a variety of students.