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If you know me, it’s no secret I’m a big fan of Nearpod. This article is a response to a post on Twitter by Wendy Torres, and I think she is doing an incredible job advocating for all learners (and instructors), specifically highlighting some aspects of accessibility that in spite of actually being federal law, are largely overlooked. I have two very different responses to Wendy’s assessment of Nearpod’s accessibility.  Today I will write in defense of Nearpod, and why I think in many respects it is very accessible. However, in my next article, which hopefully I will write tomorrow , but, it is NewRead More →

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I’ve recently switched almost completely from Google Chrome to the Chrome-based Microsoft Edge browser. I’ll share with you why on today, the eleventy-first edition of 365 Ideas for Microsoft 365. Others have written about the significance for the web overall and its ongoing evolution with Microsoft abandoning a competitive platform and choosing instead to cooperate with Google. I’m going to focus on features. Accessibility The first thing that drew me back to Microsoft in general after I had fully embraced Google Classroom and all that goes with it, was Immersive Reader. I soon learned IR was not an anomaly, just the crown jewel of Microsoft’sRead More →

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PowerPoint is currently rolling out the new Live feature, which includes several capabilities that are even more valuable during these days of remote learning. I am excited that Day 110 of 365 Ideas for Microsoft 365 is about PowerPoint Live. This is a web-based function so you will only find it in the online version of PowerPoint. You will find it under the Slide Show tab in the ribbon, alongside other recent new features in PowerPoint, Subtitles and Rehearse with Coach. Going Live On the presenter’s side of things, it is called, “Present Live”. As you will see, the audience view is called PowerPoint Live.Read More →

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Last time we wrote about using Dictation and Audio Recording in OneNote, including how they can be used to give students efficient, effective and accessible feedback.  Today, Day 104 of 365 Ideas for Microsoft 365, we will discuss other options OneNote provides for giving feedback to students.  Flexibility OneNote gives you many options for how you communicate feedback to your students. This gives teachers flexibility but also allows them to choose the best method for the student and for the assignment.  Consider using different methods to match the needs of diverse students.  For the student, there is no difference if the teacher types feedback orRead More →

Screenshot of Microsoft Office Dictation button in OneNote app for Windows 10

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I’m doing a little series on giving timely feedback to students during remote learning, with a focus on OneNote, Forms and Teams.  So Day 103 of 365 Ideas for Microsoft 365 will show you how to use the dictation and audio notes features of OneNote. A Brief History of OneNote OneNote was originally designed to be a digital binder.  Rather than being a place to create content, it was a place to collect, organize and store things you made elsewhere.  OneNote has grown into so much more; I write all my articles and even my book in OneNote.  Nevertheless, that is it’s legacy.  OneNote (alongRead More →

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A few months ago, Microsoft added a new question type in Microsoft Forms.  It is the File Upload.  This enables you to ask respondents to upload files like screenshots, PowerPoints, Word documents or even audio or video recordings as their response.  Welcome to Day 97 of 365 Ideas for Office 365– file upload in Forms. Google, I mean Microsoft Forms I’ll go ahead and start with “It’s about time”.  Google Forms had this feature a couple years before Microsoft figured this one out.  It used to be when I’d have a conversation about the two platforms, we’d all agree Google Forms had so many moreRead More →

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Unmatched commitment to accessibility is what sets Microsoft Office and their other educational programs and apps apart. Today’s obscure topic is how the Alt key unlocks accessibility features across the Microsoft Office apps. Day 96 of 365 Ideas for Office 365 is the Alt key. Universal Design for Learning Accessibility is an interesting thing.  The idea of Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is to provide helps for everybody (make them universally available), not just for individuals with more apparent disabilities.  Sometimes our needs are related to a permanent or temporary disability, but some idea that are created for a specific group of people helps theRead More →

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Did you know there is a Whiteboard app in Windows 10? Whiteboard is our topic for Day 92 of 365 Ideas for Office 365. The Whiteboard Windows 10 app is designed for collaboration.  When you open Whiteboard, you start with a blank canvas.  Since it is an open canvas, all of the items can be placed absolutely anywhere.  Once placed, you can also click and drag to move them or resize them. Digital Inking in Whiteboard It include digital inking tools, which offers an array of drawing tools.  If you place the ruler on the screen, you can make straight lines, or just have studentsRead More →

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Table of Contents are easy to create in Word.  So is making them clickable.  Welcome to Day 85 of 365 Ideas for Office 365.  Clickable Table of Contents.  Yesterday we showed you how to add visual structure and accessibility to your Word documents by utilizing the Heading Style to create collapsible menus in Microsoft Word.  An interactive Table of Contents is another way to achieve these goals. Purpose of Clickable Table of Contents Like yesterday’s topic, adding a table of contents to a Word document makes it much easier to both create and navigate longer documents but also to make any length document more accessible. Read More →

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Okay, it doesn’t sound like the sexiest topic possible.  But collapsible headings are really handy when you have a longer document, and add accessibility to any length document.  Welcome (at last) to Day 84 of 365 Ideas for Office 365– collapsible menus in Word. Why Use Collapsible Headings Besides making it easier to create longer documents, collapsible headings make it easier to navigate documents.  Consider your students with IEPs that say “reduce visual clutter” or have trouble with organization or following multi-step directions.  Imagine them having all the content or instructions, yet only needing to see one piece at a time- the part they areRead More →