The Epic Evernote Experiment Semester in Review #EdChat #EvernoteLife

The first semester is drawing to a close and I have had some time to reflect on how the Epic Evernote Experiment has impacted my classroom. Here are some of the areas I really looked at:

Paperless: 

Evernote has allowed me to get rid of handouts. I just don't make them anymore. All of my projects are shared with my students through our shared notebooks and all assignments are posted on the Assignment shared notebook that is available for parents on my website. Traditionally, these handouts would be viewed by students then trashed. Now they can view them on Evernote and trees can be saved.

Also, I'm not stuck in line at the copy machine in the mornings or during my prep. I have had more time to lesson plan and prep this semester now that everything is in Evernote. Going paperless saves time. It is a fact for me now.

Lesson Planning:

It was a pain to move everything over to Evernote because it took time, but now that it is all there, I couldn't be happier. I can find anything and everything I want in a simple search. I can change things on the fly and leave notes to myself on how lessons went and what I should keep an eye out for next time. This is so much better than a physical plan book. All of my documents are uploaded or scanned into notes in notebooks that I can easily share with other teachers in my building. I also love having access to all of my lessons on my iPad, iPhone and desktop. No lost lessons for me.

e-Portfolio:

I have all of my students keeping their work in a notebook that is shared with me. I am able to check the notebook and leave comments on their work. They also are able to review their work and improve their next assignment. No more lost assignments for my students. By using the Doxie Scanner, my kids have all of their work available wherever they are. The portfolio idea has been so successful, it might replace the stand alone final exam in other classes next year to better reflect student achievement.

Partners:

I couldn't be happier with how my IPEVO document camera, Doxie Scanner, Livescribe Sky Pen, and Boogie Board Rip have worked in my classroom. They have become parts of my classroom that I can not live without. I'm excited to start using IdeaPaint in my classroom in the coming weeks once my doors and desks are coated. These extra tools allow for a deeper integration of Evernote. I travel with many of these tools when I attend and present at conferences because they make my workflow so much smoother. I used my Evernote Moleskine notebook to jot down ideas for this post actually. Thanks to all of the partners.

Overall, I have been very happy with how Evernote has integrated into my classroom. My students use it every day in class and have loved sharing notebooks for their group projects. They are always learning something new about Evernote every day and love to show it off to others. I can't wait to see what the second semester holds for my students and Evernote. Keep an eye out for future posts.

If you want to start your Evernote journey now, follow this link to sign up!

@TheNerdyTeacher