Edmodo Makes Educating Easier

You know, sometimes I get so accustomed to relying on a particular resource that it just becomes part of my normal daily routine, and I forget that it may still be completely foreign to teachers who aren't tethered to a computer all day long.  Such is the case with one of my very favorite web resources.  If you haven't already discovered the wonderful world of Edmodo.com, prepare to be intrigued, excited, and ultimately delighted.

Edmodo offers a secure platform through which you can interact with your colleagues, students, and if you choose, their parents as well.  Create your free account, and the site will generate a class code that you can share with your students.  You will be able to use the site to post assignments for the whole group, or differentiate and send specialized instructions to individual students.  You will be provided a calendar on which you can post due dates and other important information your whole group will need, and registered students can customize for themselves with their own important dates.  There is also a library feature that will allow you to post documents, images, links and even embedded videos and podcasts, etc., so that your students can immediately access the resources they will need for a particular assignment, without ever leaving the Edmodo website.  Additionally, students can upload their own documents to a personal "backpack," eliminating the need for carrying those flash drives that are so easily lost or left in the wrong place.  Depending on the settings that you select, you can also use Edmodo to conduct class discussions and polls, build and assign quizzes, and post grades online.

One of the most versatile features of this site, I think, is the ability to not only attach files and links, but to embed html as well.  This means that you can also embed interactive elements that will take your Edmodo site from useful to extraordinary!  If you are a language teacher, for example, you can use a site like Vocaroo.com to record yourself speaking the vocabulary lesson, and embed it in Edmodo so your students can hear the correct pronunciations while they study at home.

                           

As if all of that wasn't reason enough to give Edmodo a try, consider this.  When your students complete any digital assignment, whether word processing document, slide show, podcast, movie . . . whatever, they can turn their finished assignment in to you through Edmodo, so you can eliminate carrying piles of unnecessary printouts and your own oh-so-easy to misplace flash drive.  And, if you happen to be lucky enough to team teach a class, Edmodo provides one of the simplest ways to share everything with your partner teacher and make life a little easier for both of you.

I highly recommend giving Edmodo a try.  I'm sure you will come to appreciate a resource that is simple to use, yet robust enough to handle just about all of your instructional needs.  And, your social-media savvy students will undoubtedly appreciate the instant familiarity of a classroom resource that looks and feels so much like one that they would not normally associate with school work.


Click here to access an excellent guide to using Edmodo in your classroom.  Perfect for new users!