Professional Development Lesson Plan

Seesaw: The Ins and Out of The Best Digital Tool Ever

Prepared by: Jennifer Dean

Description: Seesaw is a student digital portfolio that can be used on any device. Students are
engaged through actively participating and creating artifacts that demonstrate their knowledge.
Parents are connected and can see their childs work in real-time. During this session you will
learn how to sign on to Seesaw as a student, use the different tools to create different artifacts,
create your own class, add your students and connect your parents. Be ready to learn ways to
use it in your classroom tomorrow!

Audience: Tk-5th Grade Teachers Timeframe: 1 hour 3:30-4:30

Materials/Technology Needed: any device. Bring a chromebook,

tablet, laptop, macbook or a smartphone.

Technology Standards for Teachers (ISTE-T)

Which ISTE Standards for Teachers are addressed in this lesson?
Standards for the teacher:
o Standard 1: Facilitate and Inspire student learning and creativity. Learning how to
use this tool and get students onboard creating will definitely facilitate and inspire
student learning and creativity.
o Standard 3: Model digital age working and learning. You will be able to model
using the tool and transfer that knowledge to your students so they can use this digital
tool to create and innovate.

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 o Standard 5: Engage in professional growth and leadership. Attending this session is
an example of engaging and in professional growth and you will be the leader
teaching your students in the classroom.

Content Area Standards (If applicable)

Are there any content area standards addressed?
There are not any specific content area standards but I will be showing several examples
for math, ELA and science/social studies. I will also be providing them with resources
like fiction and nonfiction task cards for K-3rd grade teachers that cover many of the
reading standards, nonfiction writing task cards that cover many of the writing standards
and even some math exit tickets that cover most of 1st grade math standards.

Learning Outcomes
What will teachers know and be able to do as a result of this lesson?
Learn how to login to Seesaw as a student.
Learn how to use the 6 basic tools in Seesaw: (1) photo tool, (2) draw tool, (3) notebook
tool, (4) video tool, (5) add file tool and (6) link tool.
Learn how to create a class.
Learn how to add students.
Learn how to connect parents
Brainstorm ways to use it in your classroom tomorrow.

Process/Activities
How will this lesson be facilitated with teachers?
Teachers will sign into a fake Seesaw class as a student to learn how to do so. Then we
will go over each tool by giving them a specific activity to complete. For example, I will
show them how to use the photo tool by having them actually take a photo and have fun
with the tool. They will have to complete an activity where they take a selfie, use the
draw tool to add things to their image and the label tool to give it a title or write little
caption. When we do the video tool, they will take a quick video asking a question. Each
time we look at a tool, they will learn by creating and using the tool.

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 While teachers are working I will be walking around to offer assistance, provide feedback
and toggle between the teacher and student view so teachers could see both aspects. After
learning about the tool Ill give them a few minutes to brainstorm some ideas they have to
use it in their classroom and add it to a document that we are sharing. This way everyone
can collaborate with each other and start planning exactly how they will use it.
Once teachers are comfortable using the tool I will show them how to sign out and then
sign in as a teacher and help them create their own account. During this time I will show
them how to add students, connect parents and etc.
The purpose of this is to be extremely interactive and let the teachers see the tool and
start using it. They will be learning by exploring, practicing, trying it out, asking
questions, collaborating and having a safe place to learn.

Differentiation Activities/Methods
How will the workshop be adapted for different skill levels?
Go at your own pace: Teachers will get to work at their own pace. This means the
teachers just using this tool for the first time will get to take their time and do simple
steps. However, the teachers who are already comfortable with the tool will get to see
some of the extra features. For example, when using the photo and draw tool, some
teachers will just focus on using the photo and draw tool and maybe use a label but the
teachers who already know how to do that will get a little more time to play with altering
the labels, changing the design, font and etc. I might also show them how to comment on
others work while they are waiting to ensure they are learning new things and being
challenged as well. I will do this by walking around the room and showing the teachers
how to take it to the next level as they are ready.
Learning Styles Integrated into the presentation: If teachers are hands on, they are
learning hands on, if teachers need to read it and see it, there are slides with information
for that, if teachers need to hear it I am modeling and explaining, therefore all the
learning styles are being integrated into the presentation.
Collaboration: Teachers get to collaborate with each other and participate in collaborative
discussions which is differentiating the instruction automatically
Links to resources to help after the presentation and during the presentation.

Assessment of Learning
How will the participants demonstrate mastery of the learning outcomes?
Their actual work: Since I am using Seesaw I will actually see each teachers artifacts.
Ill be able to see if they understood how to use the tool, if they are mastering the
objectives and etc.

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 The Survey will also show me their honest feedback of if they learned and mastered the
learning outcomes.
Collaborative discussions: as I walk around and work and talk with the teachers I will be
able to identify if teachers are mastering the skill or need help with a specific aspect.

Resources
Provide at least three online resources for participants to review content and/or extend the
learning.
Link to the presentation: https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1nFgREUteAPSqy4-
oRatIAlO0taPblcOiB1d5715ADng/edit?usp=sharing
How to set up your class: https://help.seesaw.me/hc/en-us/articles/115003713206
Student Intro Presentation: https://ideas.seesaw.me/hc/en-us/articles/115003538746-
Student-Intro-Presentation-Pre-K-2
K-5 Math Engagement: https://ideas.seesaw.me/hc/en-us/articles/115003587966-K-5-
Math-Engagement-Seesaw
Reflection
At the end of the presentation I provided my colleagues with a Google Form to provide me with

feedback. This form was completely anonymous and allowed my colleagues to really give me

truthful feedback in a timely manner. The survey consisted of several questions that allowed me

to find out what they enjoyed about the presentation, what they would like to see changed, if they

mastered the skills and if they would like more sessions to take Seesaw to the next level. After

reviewing the feedback I quickly realized that the reason the session was so successful was

because I listened. Teachers really want to use technology, but they have not been given a voice

or a safe zone to learn. They were fearful of not knowing how to do it and looking inadequate.

They also were being forced to have PD on topics they were not interested in. By allowing the

teachers to choose the PD, picking a day that worked best for most, and giving them that

interactive experience, allowed teachers to feel heard, welcomed and safe.

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Although the survey was one way that I received feedback, another way was meeting with my

administrator. The assistant principal attended the session and also participated as a student. The

assistant principal is the districts former technology TOSA so she was really able to provide me

with a lot of feedback. She also explained that she thought it went very well and was excited to

see that now all first grade, kinder and many 2nd-5th grade teachers are using it regularly. She

explained that since the teachers were so willing to implement it right away, that it was clear the

presentation was successful. The only feedback she gave me was to show them more about

setting up their own class. Once teachers started using the tool they had a lot of questions about

1:1 vs. shared devices and enabling students to edit their items and other things that are often

questions that arise once they use the tool. This was interesting to me because it came up in the

survey too and was something I had also chose to focus on for the next session.

During the actual session; when it came to creating a class we briefly went over settings, but ran

out of time. Since it was more of a basics, I did not want to overwhelm them with too much

either. Therefore, the next session we will talk more on settings, folders and some ways to

integrate Seesaw with GAFE and other commonly used apps. This way teachers can continue to

learn based on the questions they are having as they use the tool and continue to feel comfortable

using it in their classrooms.

2017. Grand Canyon University. All Rights Reserved.