Author Archives: Matt Caratachea

Sweet Math in 5th Grade

Posted on January 21, 2016 by Matt Caratachea

My fellow HCPS ITRT, Karen Hues, had a blast in 5th grade using the Math on the Spot resources!  Math on the Spot is a growing resource that our team of elementary ITRTs have started to develop for teachers and students to use.  We make short videos focusing on where we encounter math in the …

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Posted in Google Slides, Math, Math on the Spot | Comments Off on Sweet Math in 5th Grade

Kaechele MakerFest 2015!

Posted on January 4, 2016 by Matt Caratachea

Shannon Hyman, Kaechele Elementary’s librarian, invited #TechTakeout to her AMAZING MakerFest Day to run ten different stations. Each one of the stations highlighted a tool that the students would have access to in the Kaechele Makerspace located in the library. Every 4th and 5th grade student had the opportunity to attend the event and learn …

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Posted in 3D Printing, 3Doodler, 4th Grade, 5th Grade, Kaechele, littleBits, Maker, Makey Makey, Osmo, scratch, Sewing, Stop Motion, Tinkercad | Comments Off on Kaechele MakerFest 2015!

Measuring in Google Slides

Posted on December 18, 2015 by Matt Caratachea

Using an actual ruler and using a ruler that you manipulate on the computer are two very different yet important skills.  When I was in the classroom as a third grade teacher I always wished I gave the students more opportunities to manipulate rulers digitally since they will be asked to at the end of …

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Posted in 3rd Grade, Dumbarton, Google Slides, Math, Measurement | Comments Off on Measuring in Google Slides

3rd Grade Patterns in Google Drawing

Posted on December 17, 2015 by Matt Caratachea

In 3rd grade at Crestview we made patterns using Google Drawing. Collaborative Google Drawing is one of my favorite ways to introduce a few topics.  Patterns and arrays are two math topics that are perfect for Google Drawing.  For this lesson I set up a folder in Google with enough templates to pair the students …

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Posted in 3rd Grade, Crestview, Google Draw, Google Drive, Math, Patterns | Comments Off on 3rd Grade Patterns in Google Drawing

#TechTakeout Has Fun With Fractions At Ratcliffe

Posted on December 16, 2015 by Matt Caratachea

Last Friday #TechTakeout had the pleasure of going out to Ratcliffe Elementary. We had a blast doing computation with fractions! We first started off doing a Kahoot to get everyone warmed up. It was 5 easy fraction questions, just enough to get everyone excited. Here’s the link to the Kahoot if you want to use …

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Posted in 3D Printing, 5th Grade, ABCya Talkify, Board Thing, Fractions, Google Slides, Kahoot, Math, Nearpod, Tech Takeout | Comments Off on #TechTakeout Has Fun With Fractions At Ratcliffe

Native American App Smash

Posted on December 15, 2015 by Matt Caratachea

We had a blast making videos and smashing apps in 2nd grade!  The students were learning about the Eastern Woodlands Native Americans and I wanted to give them a chance to show everything they knew in a fun new way.  We recently received 26 iPads from the PTA at Short Pump Elementary, so I have …

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Posted in 2nd Grade, ipad, Native Americans, Pic Kids, Puppet Edu, QR Code, Short Pump, Social Studies | Comments Off on Native American App Smash

Native American App Smash

Posted on December 15, 2015 by Matt Caratachea

We had a blast making videos and smashing apps in 2nd grade!  The students were learning about the Eastern Woodlands Native Americans and I wanted to give them a chance to show everything they knew in a fun new way.  We recently received 26 iPads from the PTA at Short Pump Elementary, so I have …

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Posted in 2nd Grade, ipad, Native Americans, Pic Kids, Puppet Edu, QR Code, Short Pump, Social Studies | Comments Off on Native American App Smash

2nd Grade Postcards

Posted on December 14, 2015 by Matt Caratachea

In Ms. Aquilina’s 2nd grade class we had the students collaboratively working on an awesome continent project.  The students researched a particular continent in groups of 3.  Once they had all of their information gathered the students went to their Google Drives and opened up a folder that Ms. Aqulina and I shared with them. …

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Posted in 2nd Grade, Continents, Google Drive, Google Slides, Kaechele, QR Code, Research, Social Studies | Comments Off on 2nd Grade Postcards

#TechTakeout is the Word at Montrose Elementary!

Posted on November 23, 2015 by Matt Caratachea

Today the #TechTakeout crew headed over to Montrose Elementary to work on language arts! Mrs. Hues, the ITRT at Montrose, met with the Title I Reading Teacher, Kathy Rohr, to find the grade level and topic with the greatest need. The winners of the #TechTakeout party were 3rd grade! We came in to focus on …

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Posted in ActivInspire, Board Thing, Image Quest, Language Arts, Movie Maker, Nearpod, One Search, Padlet, Tumblebooks, Word Study | Comments Off on #TechTakeout is the Word at Montrose Elementary!

Hooray For Arrays!

Posted on November 20, 2015 by Matt Caratachea

Our new Math on the Spot episode is up, and it’s pretty delicious if I do say so myself!  We had a blast working with the students and teachers at Glen Allen High School!  We teamed up with the ITRT at Glen Allen High School, Drew Baker, to work with the Family and Consumer Sciences …

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Posted in 3rd Grade, Arrays, Math on the Spot, Multiplication | Comments Off on Hooray For Arrays!