It's Meghan, back this week with another (hopefully) awesome idea. If you don't remember, or are new to our blog, I teach 1st grade. I love math and technology.
One of the questions we often get is how we create math groups during the guided math portion of ZONES. Math groups for me are fluid, based on the standard we are working on and each student's proficiency. I use technology, specifically Seesaw, to streamline my data collection. This is something you can do with a little or a lot of tech in your classroom. It works on any device or computer.
So today . . . Seesaw and exit tickets! Whatever the exit ticket is that I am using to gauge understanding, I have my students take a picture or screen shot of it and turn it in to our exit ticket folder on Seesaw. I can then see how my students are doing (without sifting through a pile of papers) and easily give feedback that my students can see, and that parents have access to as well.
Here are a couple examples . . . Exit Ticket in Pieces Basic
Pieces Basic is a free app on our iPads. The students had to build the number 45, screen shot it and turn it in on Seesaw. I saw how each student was doing and gave them immediate feedback, either affirming their work or correcting their mistakes. You can see in the comment below the picture, I told the student what needed to be changed. On the picture, I edited their work using the drawing tool to show the student the correct way to build the number. From this exit ticket, I was able to create a group of students that needed to be pulled for additional instruction.
Paper Exit Ticket
Here is an example of an exit ticket from our math curriculum (Engage NY). The student completed the exit ticket and took a picture in Seesaw. To give feedback on this exit ticket, the draw, label and text features we all used. Again, the student has immediate access to this, as do parents.
Skills View
In the paid version of Seesaw, you have access to 'skills'. These are areas you are working on that you want to assess the students on. Think standards, but less formal. The goal of this feature is to give you a quick view of how students are doing with a concept. When a student turns an item in, you quickly mark their understanding on a 4 point scale. Then in the 'skills' view, you have a visual of how the students are doing. You can pull a red (does not understand), yellow, light green group, or green group (ready for extensions). So easy! No lists of student, no piling paper together. All of this is hidden from students and parents. It is only for you and your instructional purposes.
While Seesaw Plus/For Schools is paid, it is not that expensive. If it looks interesting to you, you should look into it.
In summation, use exit tickets/quick checks to build small groups. And then, use technology to streamline that process so you have more time to spend with your students during the guided math portion of ZONES. 
As you are thinking ahead and planning your ZONES activities, don't get overwhelmed. Depending on the rotational schedule that works for you, many options can stay the same for weeks at a time. In my classroom, the only thing I change weekly is one of the on your Own activities and my two Notebook options. I am planning to have more, and more differentiated, activities this year. To make sure that my students understand exactly what they need to do (and so that they don't need to ask me while I am working with students), I am going to use Seesaw.
Seesaw is an online learning portfolio for students that is capable of so much more. Here is a previous post with a little more about it.
Along with everything that Seesaw allows students to accomplish, it allows you (teacher) to do lots of things. One is to create videos that you can share with your students. These are easily opened and shared in Seesaw. Since Seesaw is web and app based, it works with personal computers and iPads. You could do this with a class set of devices or just a few shared. Now I am going to take you through exactly how you do it! How to Do It!
Step 1
In the main Seesaw screen (if you aren't there, click the green plus sign), choose how you want to share the directions. Is it a picture that you speak over? Is it a video that you actually show how to complete the task? I am going to choose video for mine. (You could also upload a video you completed elsewhere or upload a link to a video you created. This would be great if you know you want to use the video again.) 
Step 2
Assuming you are creating a video, record exactly what you want done. This should not take very long. It is just a quick reminder of instructions they have already had. (If you choose to use a different format, the next instructions will be exactly the same.) 
Step 3
Once you are finished recording, click the green check mark once (to compress and preview the video) and then again to submit it to your class. 
Now you are at the list of students in your class. Do not share it with them!! They do not need it in their feed to access at all times, only when they need it to learn about an activity. (Tip - create a fake student to share things with.) Step 4 Now you are going to print the QR code for the video you created. Students will then scan it in Seesaw if they need to hear the instructions. 
Hit print . . . and that's it! I PROMISE, after you do this once, you will see how easy it is and how little time it takes. If it was exhaustive, it wouldn't be worth doing each week.
Give it a try! I promise you'll be excited about the possibilities. Bye for now and good luck! -Meghan (1st Grade)
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