Tired of Playing Email Ping Pong to Set Up Meetings?

We all know how it works, endless rounds of emails to find a time for a small group of people to meet. Doodle can end all that. Doodle.com is a free website that takes the pain out of finding meeting times that work for everyone. You can find out how it works by watching the videos at http://blog.doodle.com/english/2011/10/05/video-doodles/.

You simply create a poll that has times that you're available and invite participants. Each participant checks off the times they're available, and you choose the time that works best.

Another tool that's rather hidden in Doodle is called MeetMe. You can put up your schedule showing when you're available and allow students to sign up for times to meet with you. It's not quite as sophisticated as the one I use (TimeTrade which costs $50/year), but there's a lot to be said for free!

Give Doodle a try the next time you need to set up a meeting and see how it works. There's nothing to lose!

Whiteboard Magnets

I just read a blog post by Cameron Moll about how he used an inkjet printer and magnetic paper to create whiteboard magnets to teach HTML5. This got me to thinking of hundreds of ways this tool could be used in the classroom so I thought I'd pass on the information to you here.

These magnets are easy to make. Just buy some Office Depot glossy magnetic sheets which cost about $14 for five 8.5" x 11" sheets, then use MS Word or any other program you're familiar with to create the text or artwork you want on the magnets. Print onto a magnetic sheet using an inkjet printer and cut out the individual magnets.

Use them in your classroom to present a topic, illustrate a way of grouping ideas, or let your students arrange them on the whiteboard to solve language, math, or programming problems. The possibilities for using these whiteboard magnets are endless.

Online Courses from @ONE for Faculty

There is still time to sign up for @ONE's online courses coming up this month. These courses count toward certification to teach online at Cuyamaca College and if you sign up for @ONE's online teaching certification program, you can get a certification that is honored at most California community colleges. The cost is only $55 per course and there is a very small amount of money in Professional Development funds that you can apply for to pay that cost.

Here are the courses starting in October:

• Introduction to Teaching with Blackboard 9.1 with Greg Beyrer (October 10 – November 4)
• Creating Accessible Online Courses with Carolyn Fiori and Jayme Johnson (October 24 –November 18)
• Designing Effective Online Assessments with William Doherty and Kathryn Damm (October 24 – November 18)
• Introduction to Online Teaching and Learning with Catherine Hillman (October 24 – November 18)