Maria Vita is Amazing! AKA What to Buy for Your Psych Class

Fellow TOPSS Board Member Maria Vita is an amazing person. Over the past year, she has shared a Google Doc she put together highlighting with links some things you may want to purchase for your psychology classroom.

I leave you with her list:

The links in the doc are active, but not the ones below in the picture. Open the doc and check all of them out. She is pretty terrific.

posted by Chuck Schallhorn

Share

Google Classroom, how do I love thee?

Happy, happy July friends! Apologies for my absence from the blogosphere - I'm living the "Developmental Psychology" chapter here at home with Baby George...who just STOPPED crying (pretty much) since his birth date in April. Good times. With less "Shhhh....shhhhh....please.....shhhh...." - there will be more time to think Psychology and get ready for the school year!

Gratuitous Baby George photo 

Anywhoo - the point of my post. Google Classroom. This classroom app available with Chrome is pretty much the greatest thing ever. Why do I love it so much? It has made my life so, so, so much easier.

How do I use it in my classroom?

1. Classroom management - I post every assignment (Unit FRQs), practice test (any teacher keen on retrieval practice!?), powerpoint, prezi, etc....that I use for easy access for my students. After the first few days of class, I NEVER hear, "I was gone yesterday...what did I miss?" They start knowing RIGHT OFF THE BAT that anything they miss is there for them. And then they stop asking that dreaded questions. Which. Is. Awesome.

2. Paperless Classroom - I have gone away from a lot of paper copies of things and have found that it is much easier for kids to grab things off classroom. Win-win.

3. IEP/504 Accommodations - I have found that a classroom management site like Google allows my students with IEP or 504 accommodations to be more self-sufficient and that it lessens my workload in this situation. Students can go right to the webpage and print off notes or follow along in class on a smartphone or Chromebook. This is huge for kids with note taking needs or for parents who want to help their students organize themselves or study.

4. Parent communication with what's going on in class - I allow parents to join my classroom and for some of them who want to assist their students - this keeps them in the loop. Parent emails have dramatically decreased. (Not that I don't want to hear from parentals.)

5. Students may submit homework or assignments on Classroom and you can grade them digitally. You (literally) never lose a paper. You also know who has their stuff in, and who's out. (Project Runway, anyone?)

6. When I want students to do something in class (a quick web-based activity, a Socrative.com quiz, or when I have them do stations activity days) - I can link up the webpages right to Google classroom. NO MORE will you have to hear "This website doesn't work." Ugh....every teacher's worst nightmare.
NO MORE, PEOPLE.

I'm sure there are many, many more uses for Google classroom. How do you use it?

----Posted by Amy Ramponi

Share

Psychology Shopping: Megapost

Are you ready to do some shopping?  If so, below is a list of places you can find wonderful items for your own personal collection and/or your classroom.

Please be sure to add any places or ideas in the comments!

---

Books

I will do a separate post on all of these at some point in the future, but here are a few pictures of my bookshelves-I can recommend nearly all of these; I have not gotten to all of them (and this is not even all my psych books)--sorry for the mess, I just recently moved:

---

PsychKits

http://psychkits.com/ 
Includes inversion goggles, activities, and many other resources

---

Amazon.com

The THSP Psych Store--lots of possibilities

Lots of different brain models

Psychology Games

Psychology Jewelry--seriously, this is a thing!

---

Apps

iScore5 Psychology App
https://www.facebook.com/iScore5APPsych/
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/iscore5-ap-psych-2016/id1084611907?mt=8

Psych Hero
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/psychero-test-prep-for-ap/id492497083?mt=8

---

Psychology Posters

Holstee Manifesto Poster
https://www.holstee.com/collections/all/products/holstee-manifesto-poster 

If you can print out your own posters (and possibly have them laminated by your school), Pinterest has numerous possibilities:
https://www.pinterest.com/search/pins/?q=psychology%20posters&rs=typed&0=psychology%7Ctyped&1=posters%7Ctyped


From the APA, Classroom Posters--downloadable
http://www.apa.org/ed/precollege/undergrad/classroom-posters.aspx


Anatomical Prints
Skull Anatomy
http://anatomicalprints.com/human_skull_anatomy_chart.html

Anatomy Warehouse
Spinal Nerves
https://www.anatomywarehouse.com/spinal-nerves-anatomical-chart-a-102614

Organs of the Ear
https://www.anatomywarehouse.com/the-ear-organs-of-hearing-and-balance-anatomical-chart-a-102574

Brain Poster-$11
https://www.anatomywarehouse.com/the-brain-anatomical-chart-a-102567

Brain Model
https://www.anatomywarehouse.com/deluxe-human-brain-anatomy-model-a-100130

Brain Model with Arteries-$344
https://www.anatomywarehouse.com/deluxe-brain-anatomy-model-with-arteries-9-parts-a-100472

Giant Brain Model-$467
https://www.anatomywarehouse.com/giant-regional-brain-anatomy-model-a-103132

---

Teachers Discovery Store-Psychology Page

Social Studies dot com
They have a little bit of everything, but especially books and DVDs. They tend to be a bit more expensive

Cafe Press Psychology Jewelry

Cafe Press All Gifts

---

The Psychology Shop
for lots of different ideas including Jung and Freud finger puppets--don't even think about commenting on this one
Freudian Slippers

Zazzle Psychology Gifts

Etsy Psychology Gifts

Sniffy the Virtual Rat (Lite Version)


Again, if I have missed anything, please leave a note in the comments or email me at thspblog@gmail.com 



posted by Chuck Schallhorn

Share