Teaching with Tech MLTI Team

The MLTI Team is excited to announce the release of a new spinoff series, called Capitol Connections. These episodes will examine projects and teams throughout the Maine Department of Education, showcasing how they are transforming learning for students throughout Maine. The goal of Capitol Connections is to shine a light on some of this great work while hearing from the people who make it possible. For our inaugural episode, we are exploring MOOSE (Maine Online Open Source Education) with the MOOSE team. We will hear from team leaders, Kristen Shaw, Andrew Doak, and Stephanie Connors, along with an interview with the MOOSE Project Manager, Jenn Page. Come hear about the MOOSE project, the MOOSE method, and the fantastic MOOSE website that houses all of their great content. 



The Maine Department of Education’s website describes MOOSE as:

In response to the inequitable access to in-person education faced by Maine students at the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic, MOOSE was created to leverage the expertise of Maine educators to develop a free resource for online learning.

Now entering its fourth year, MOOSE continues to innovate and evolve, expanding the capabilities of our dedicated online platform and working with educators to develop modules that fit within dedicated PreK-12 learning progressions. What started as an emergency response has become a growing repository of quality content and resources that are used as support-rich enhancements to school based education.

MOOSE has also become known for its quality professional development, helping Maine educators expand and deepen their own practice even as they create content for the platform. The relationships and learning that come from being on a MOOSE team, along with the support to innovate and iterate on their ideas, are what keeps these educators coming back session after session as Instructional Designers.

https://www.maine.gov/doe/moose



To learn more about MOOSE and examine MOOSE content, their website is:

learnwithmoose.maine.gov



To contact Jenn Page and the MOOSE team:

jennifer.page@maine.gov



To contact the MLTI and Learning Through Technology Teams:

doe-ltt@maine.gov




Mobile friendly archive of every episode of the show:

https://t.co/jHfsnavNm6



You can find the Learning Through Technology team on X at:

x.com/mainedoeltt



Music Credits:

All music was created with loops in Soundtrap.

In this episode, we talk about the MLTI Ambassador position and provide information for people who are interested in applying for the next two-year cycle as part of our team as distinguished educators with the Maine Department of Education. 



If you wanted to learn more about the position, check out our episode from Season 1 of the Teaching With Tech podcast called “What are MLTI Ambassadors?”https://open.spotify.com/episode/68GyU3whjEyKo8tfOIZohA?si=YiaLCd6nRDWb2jEdYiMVMA

MLTI Ambassador job description:

https://www.maine.gov/doe/sites/maine.gov.doe/files/2023-03/MLTI%20Ambassador%20Job%20Description.pdf

MLTI Ambassador position FAQ:

https://www.maine.gov/doe/sites/maine.gov.doe/files/2023-03/MLTI%20Ambassador%20FAQ.pdf

MLTI Ambassador application:

https://mainedoe.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_6inyqoMzc3U4PZQ

You can contact Jonathan R. Werner at:

jonathan.werner@maine.gov

You can contact the MLTI or Learning Through Technology Teams at: DOE-LTT@maine.gov

Mobile friendly archive of every episode of the show:

https://t.co/jHfsnavNm6

Music Credits:

Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

“Acoustic Motivation” Music by Yurii Semchyshyn from Pixabay

Teaching with Tech theme song created using loops in Soundtrap

Show Notes

The Maine State FIRST LEGO League Challenge Championship 2024 was held at the Brewer Community School in February. More than two dozen teams from around the state came together to test their robots on the competition floor, show their innovation projects to judges and try to capture the Champion’s Award (and a chance to go to the national event in Houston). Host Jon Graham spoke with MLTI Ambassadors Joshua Schmidt and Jeff Ireland (who were judges at the event), Jamee Luce (Senior Mentor for FIRST Robotics in Maine and Coach of FRC Team 2648) and Geoff Cyr (Volunteer Coordinator for FIRST LEGO League and Coach of FLL Team 52374).

If you wanted to learn more about this event or other robotics programs and events, go to https://www.rimaine.org. To share your experiences and successes with robotics, you can reach out to the team at DOE-LTT@maine.gov.

Mobile friendly archive of every episode of the show:https://t.co/jHfsnavNm6

You can find the Learning Through Technology team on X at:

x.com/mainedoeltt

Community Corner Music Credits: 

"Nowhere Land" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

"Paradise Found" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

The MLTI Student Conference has a rich history of creating valuable learning experiences for students all over Maine. And like many events, the Covid-19 pandemic forced an immediate and drastic shift. Starting in May of 2020, the event turned virtual, using innovative strategies to keep the spirit of the conference alive while continuing to provide high-quality and engaging learning experiences for students. As the virtual conference has grown, it’s also evolved. This year, the MLTI and Learning Through Technology Teams here at the Maine Department of Education are excited to announce something new. Rather than asynchronous, virtual sessions, the conference will be a virtual board game, called the MLTI Winter Classic. This episode will talk about the structure of the game, the spirit behind the design of the game, along with tips and tricks to help schools and teachers make the virtual conference as valuable as possible. We will hear from the entire MLTI Ambassador Team along with the coordinator for the LTT team, Emma Banks, on why the changes are valuable and how to best prepare your school and students for this exciting new event. If you wanted to learn more about this event or sign your school up for the Maine Winter Classic, go to www.maine.gov/doe/learning/ltt/conference or contact the team at DOE-LTT@maine.gov to learn more.

Here is the SLED to give tips and tricks to prepare for the event: tinyurl.com/vscsled

Here is the link to the Tabletopia platform to play the game (or test it out before the 7th): tinyurl.com/vscmlti

Mobile friendly archive of every episode of the show: https://t.co/jHfsnavNm6

You can find the Learning Through Technology team on X at:

x.com/mainedoeltt

Episode 20 Music Credits: 

“Samba Isobel” and “Fuzzball Parade”

Music Composed by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Teaching with Tech Theme Song created using loops found in Soundtrap

In this episode, the MLTI team continues their conversation on prioritizing wellness. Joshua talks with AJ and Jeff about social media’s effect on student mental health, and they describe two tools that provide immediate resources for teachers to broach that conversation carefully and effectively. Gwyneth and Nicole have an interview with Eric Hanson, assistant superintendent of Old Orchard Beach Schools, RSU 23, about their professional development strategies that focus on improving teacher health and wellness. Finally, Donna and Martha chat about a professional development workshop called Teacher Wellness and Mindfulness: Engaging Students with Your Presence.

This episode also marks the 1 year anniversary of the Teaching With Tech podcast. As a celebration, this episode includes a special guest who has been with us since the very beginning. The Learning Through Technology team has also released a brand new mobile friendly archive of every episode of the show:

https://t.co/jHfsnavNm6

You can find the Learning Through Technology team on X at:

x.com/mainedoeltt

Click here for information about this year’s MLTI Student Conferences:

www.maine.gov/doe/learning/ltt/conference or contact the team at DOE-LTT@maine.gov to learn more. 

Episode 19 Music Credits: 

"Acoustic Motivation" - Music by Yrii Semchyshyn from Pixabay

"Mesmerizing" - Music by Gvidon from Pixabay

“Morning” and “Wake Up to the Renaissance”

Music Composed by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Teaching with Tech Theme Song created using loops found in Soundtrap

In this episode the Maine Learning Technology Team (MLTI) and Learning Through Technology (LTT) Team discuss the topic of teacher wellness. Because this topic is so wide-ranging, the team split the discussion into five segments. Joshua Schmidt and Chris Beckwith discuss augmented reality and virtual reality and how those tools can impact both physical and mental wellbeing. Nicole Karod and Martha Thibodeau explore artificial intelligence tools and how they can save teachers time. AJ Rog and Jeff Ireland chat about some tech tools that can promote physical wellbeing and even save some money for Maine educators. Tracy Williamson and Donna Netzer then discuss the overall classroom environment and its role in wellness for both teachers and students. Jon Graham is also joined by Susan Berry who is Health Education and Health Promotion Specialist at the Maine DOE. She talks about the upcoming Winter Wellness Summit, which is an annual event that started in 1985. Susan also details the many ways that educators can engage with health and wellness through digital tools, apps, websites and special programs.

We also wanted to remind people about signups for this year's MLTI Student Conferences. We will be hosting two student conferences again this year, one virtual and one in person. The virtual conference will be on March 7th and the in-person conference will be on May 23rd. You can go to www.maine.gov/doe/learning/ltt/conference or contact the team at DOE-LTT@maine.gov to learn more. 

Episode 18 Music Credits: 

"Deep Relaxation" 

"Groove Grove" 

"Beauty Flow" 

"Electro (Sketch)" 

"Farm" 

All composed by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Teaching with Tech Theme Song created using loops found in SoundtrapResource Links From This Episode:MEA Benefits Trust App - Enrollment - Identify (virginpulse.com)Winter Wellness Summit - https://www.maine.gov/doe/schools/safeschools/wellness/pd