All My QR Code Secrets!

Hey, ya'll! I'm so happy to be celebrating Teacher Appreciation Week with a bunch of amazing teacher bloggers and also sharing some special top secret teacher tips!

Well my three teacher secrets are all about QR codes which are no longer a secret in the classroom but I still want to share with you how much I love using them. QR codes are like my teacher assistant because I rely on them daily for so much. (If you're completely unfamiliar with QR codes, check out this post that will give you lots of tips and information on using QR codes and how to use them.)

Beginning of the Year

At the beginning of the year, I use QR codes to create a class website magnet that my students can refer to all year long. My class website is vital to my year going smooth and you can check out how it works at the Inspired Owls Corner blog post. By creating a QR code magnet, I am able to make sure my students have access to the website at home on their devices, too. Here's a post on how you can create your own QR code class website card, too.

During The Year

During the year, we use QR codes for so very many things, but the biggest way is definitely with QR code task cards. Having a way for students to check their own work and be more independent learners is really priceless. And QR codes do just that.

The main activity we do with QR code task cards is "Solving the Room." I purchased a bunch of Stikki Clips and placed them around the walls of my classroom.

They're a little pricey at Amazon. Let me know if you find them somewhere cheaper!

Then I stick a set of cards in the clips around the classroom in number order.

Students work with a partner (I'm not 1 to 1 yet. I have 8 iPods I purchased on Ebay with TpT money and 2 iPad minis I received through DonorsChoose.). They go to any problem on the wall and begin solving it. Of course you can use recording sheets, but I have my students use spiral notebooks. That way it stays all together and I don't have to make copies all the time.

After they solve a problem, they scan the answer QR code. If they're correct, they place a check mark (or they can stamp it if they find that more engaging).

If they're incorrect, they leave it blank and try to see what went wrong. If they have two or more incorrect in a row, I tell them to stop and come see me so we can fix the issue before they do all 24 problems incorrectly.

This is my primary source for independent work. Being able to move as they work keeps the blood moving and gives them a nice little break in between problems. I have actually gone a little crazy with QR code task cards and I have created over 1,200 task cards for 4th grade math skills alone.

If you're interested in making your own QR code task cards, here's a freebie editable resource that already has the QR codes created for you. All you have to do is supply the questions!

End of the Year

At the end of the year, I have used QR codes in several different ways. First of all, you can dump all of the QR code task cards you have in a pile and use them for testing review. This year, I've given my students a recording sheet and had them solve two problems from a different set of cards until they had filled up all of the 24 boxes in the recording sheet.

I also have created a code that when scanned, shows all of the videos I have made of the students throughout the year. You can see all the details on how to do that here.

I then took that code and created business cards with them so students can watch the videos even after school had ended. You can check out that post here.

So those are a few of my QR code teacher "secrets." Now it's time for you to scroll down and learn some more teacher secrets from a fellow blogger! :)

An InLinkz Link-up