Any teacher under the sun will tell you cell phones plus students can be a real pain. You know they're going to try to use them every instant they can. So why not get them to be productive with their electronic appendage?
Having taught for so many years at a school that never had technology available when I needed it (testing year round means a never available computer lab), I decided to take an innovative approach: Let my kiddos use the very thing I was trying to keep from them.
They have these mini computers at their fingertips and are constantly told to put them away. I say, teach them how to use them for my own devices.
I preface having them do any electronic activity with a solid threat: If I see you using it inappropriately (texting, gaming, Facebook, whatever), you will lose the privilege. I also keep them on a strike system in which if I catch you texting during regular class time, you get a warning the first time, a call home the second, and a loss of privilege the third (everything gets done the old fashioned way).
Works like a charm. They're just excited to do something different in a classroom, so they're game for anything I throw at them. Don't know what a tank looks like and you wanted to add it to your poster? Google it! Not sure about the source you wanted to cite? Google it!
I also create whole lesson plans around using their phones. Just make sure the kids have data plans and at least one person per group has a phone. I just did a unit launch where the kids had to perform a digital scavenger hunt. They used their phones to look up information about different aspects of the unit. They loved it, were productive the entire time, and produced great results.
The big added bonus here is that my kids get to have the time on the phone that they want, so I don't have to combat the constant desire they have to pull them out of their bags.
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