Friday, June 4, 2010
It’s the last Friday of the school year and that makes this the last TGIF. However, it’s not just the last TGIF of the year; it’s the last TGIF, period. As many of you already know, beginning with the 2010-2011 school year, I will become the Instructional Coach at Northside. I’ve loved my three years as the Technology Instructional Advisor, but I’m excited about the opportunity to work more closely with teachers and students on a day-to-day basis and return to a single “home” building. I certainly won’t be leaving technology behind, it just won’t be my primary focus.

Since I won’t be sharing resources with you each week, I thought I’d end the year by sharing three of my best sources of all those resources. These are some of the places I turn to each week to find the websites and tools that I pass on to all of you. If you’re looking for something to use in your classroom or for your planning, check these out:

Free Technology for Teachers - I’m not sure when Richard Byrne sleeps. He is constantly sharing resources on his blog that are pertinent to teachers of all grade levels and subject areas. You’ll want to subscribe to this one. (http://www.freetech4teachers.com/)

Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day – If Richard Byrne doesn’t sleep, then Larry Ferlazzo must be up all night, too. One of my favorite features of Larry’s blog are his “lists” to which he’s constantly adding sites as he finds them. Larry teaches ESL/ELL/EFL students, but his resources are useful to teachers in any subject and any grade level. This is another one to add to your RSS reader. (http://larryferlazzo.edublogs.org/)

Delicious - I’ve written before about creating an account with Delicious to save your bookmarks online. However, even without an account, you can search for “tags” or topics on Delicious and find sites that others have bookmarked about those topics. On the homepage, click on “Explore Tags” and start typing search terms. It might take a try or two to figure out how people have tagged a particular topic, but I usually find it’s worth the effort. (http://delicious.com/)

Thanks for a great three years! Have a great summer, everyone!

Anne

Friday, May 21, 2010

Gem ~ a website or application that might work well for you or your students

Students are sometimes more motivated to write when they know they’ll be publishing their work in creative ways. ZooBurst is a new (very new!) site that allows users to create virtual pop-up books. Choose from clipart pictures in their library or upload your own. Add speech bubbles as well as text that appears at the bottom of the page. There is even an “augmented reality” option for viewing the books on computers that have webcams. This site is so new that this is its alpha release (like a first draft). You have to request a free account to create a book, but anyone can view the books. The site says that they’re working on special features for educators, but for now teachers can create one account and login for their students. At this point there doesn’t appear to be any way to make books private, so I would recommend that you not include photos of students or use their whole names. If you’re looking for something different to end the year, give ZooBurst a try! (Click here to see a ZooBurst book that I made.) (http://alpha.zooburst.com/index.php)

Idea ~ a way to enhance your LFS lessons with technology

Eyeplorer.com describes itself as a “graphical knowledge engine”. Type a search term into the box in the middle and hit return. Eyeplorer searches for information related to the term and displays each bit as an “eye spot” on the circular chart. Each wedge of the chart organizes the information into categories. The size of the “eye spot” indicates how much information there is about each item. Click on an “eye spot” to read more about it. If you create an account, you can also drag the information onto a notepad at the side of the window so that you can save what you’ve read. Currently, Eyeplorer‘s searches are limited to information from Wikipedia, but the site claims that additional data sources will be available soon. Eyeplorer.com could be an interesting way to build background knowledge and activate thinking by showing students the connections between concepts. (http://en.eyeplorer.com/show/)

Fact ~ Just a bit of information

It’s getting to be that time of year again….time to make sure that all of your files are safely saved in your network folder (H drive) and not just on your computer’s hard drive. Some of our teacher computers will be replaced this summer and you don’t want to risk losing all your files. If you need help, just let me know.

Have a great weekend!

Anne

Friday, May 14, 2010

Gem ~ a website or application that might work well for you or your students

Simulations can be an effective way for students to apply knowledge and skills they’ve learned throughout the year. Big Picture Small World has a page dedicated to games that involve students in real world problems such as world hunger, global climate issues, energy, and world politics. High school and middle school students can use these games as a way to explore these issues and learn more about our world. (http://www.bigpicturesmallworld.com/funstuff/biggames.shtml)

Idea ~ a way to enhance your LFS lessons with technology

Admongo is a new site from the Federal Trade Commission designed to teach 8-12 year-olds about advertising with the goal of making them “more discerning consumers of information.” The site features an interactive game that takes kids through a variety of advertising scenarios and teaches them about strategies that advertisers use. There is also a curriculum developed with Scholastic, Inc. that focuses on using critical thinking skills. This could be an interesting way for students to practice extending thinking skills such as compare/contrast, error analysis, and constructing support. (http://www.admongo.gov/admongo.html)

Fact ~ Just a bit of information (or something fun)

Having students do a book report to wrap up the year? Check out this list of 10 Technology Enhanced Alternatives to Book Reports to try something new. If you want some help, just let me know!

Have a great weekend!

Anne

Friday, May 7, 2010

Gem ~ a website or application that might work well for you or your students

Kubbu.com is a new tool teachers can use to create practice activities for students. You can sample activities shared by other teachers or create a free account and make your own. You can share your activities with your students in two ways: by giving them a link to the activity or by creating individual student accounts for them. If you create student accounts (which don’t require a student email address, by the way) you can track their progress. Activity types include matching, sorting, multiple choice, and crosswords. (http://www.kubbu.com/)

Idea ~ a way to enhance your LFS lessons with technology

When working on vocabulary or writing, particularly when writing in other languages, or in Math and Science classes, the traditional “English” keyboard often doesn’t provide all the marks and symbols that you need. On our Macs, there’s an easy way to find out how to make those special characters. On the menu bar at the top of the screen, click on the flag icon and choose “Show Keyboard Viewer”. A small keyboard will appear on your screen (click the green button in the top left corner to make it a little bigger). If you click on the “Option” key on that keyboard, it will show which keys will make selected symbols or characters when the Option key is held down at the same time. For instance, if I want to put the accent on resumé, I type resum then hold down the Option key and the e (the accent will appear) and then type the letter e (the e will be placed under the accent). If you or your students need to type special characters, this Keyboard Viewer can come in handy.

Fact ~ Just a bit of information (or something fun)

You’ve probably used Dictionary.com as a reference tool, but did you know that they also have a variety of word games? I’m not always a fan of “arcade” style games for learning because too often they’re more about the “game” than the “learning”. But these word games are challenging, yet fun. For instance in Clockwords, players have to type words to fend off bugs that are trying to steal an inventor’s secrets. You can type any word you want, but using the letters shown at the bottom of the screen gives you additional power. This game could challenge students at any level. (http://dictionary.reference.com/fun/)

Have a great weekend and Happy Mother’s Day, Moms!

Anne

Friday, April 30, 2010

Gem ~ a website or application that might work well for you or your students

Triptico (the creators of Word Magnets) has a lot of new resources available that could be helpful in the classroom. Try the Probability Spinner, Simple Calculator, or any of the other activities. These are web-based and easy to use whether you’re connected to an interactive white board or projecting on a screen. (http://www.triptico.co.uk/)

Idea ~ a way to enhance your LFS lessons with technology

This is a “re-run” of a TGIF entry from last year around this time, but one that I thought I’d share again. Free Rice is a site that allows students (or anyone) to practice vocabulary (in several languages), math facts, and content from several other subject areas through multiple choice questions. For every question answered correctly, ten grains of rice are donated to the World Food Programme to help feed the world’s hungry. The site also contains information about world hunger. This is a great way for students to do some good while brushing up on their skills. (http://freerice.com/)

Fact ~ Just a bit of information

Tuesday, May 4th is National Teacher Day and part of Teacher Appreciation Week. As a parent of two MASD grads and someone who has the privilege of working with you all every day, thanks for all you do. It’s not the easiest job in the world, but then again, that’s not why we became teachers, is it?

Have a great weekend,

Anne

Friday, April 23, 2010

Gem ~ a website or application that might work well for you or your students

Tired of the same old projects? Looking for a new way for students to share what they’ve learned? Try Glogster! Set up a free educator’s account that will allow you to create up to 100 student accounts with no need for student email addresses. Click here for a sample I made this morning to show you just a few of Glogster’s features! (http://edu.glogster.com/)

Idea ~ a way to enhance your LFS lessons with technology

In every discipline there are some bits of content that just have to be memorized…basic math facts, elements in the periodic table, vocabulary. BrainFlips is a new site that allows you to create and share flashcards online. Every deck of cards can be viewed three different ways. Introduction Mode allows you to see the question and the answer at the same time. Traditional Mode shows the question and then you can click to see the answer. Response Mode requires the student to enter an answer, either multiple choice or short answer. Cards can include text, images, even audio and video. Creating cards requires setting up a free account, which does require an email address and students must be over the age of 13. For younger students teachers could create the cards or set up an account and monitor students as they create them using that account. Older students could create their own accounts and build their own decks. You can also set up groups and invite other members to join a group. This could be a great way to have students share flashcards they’ve made for a class so they can learn with and from one another. (http://www.brainflips.com/home.html)

Fact ~ Just a bit of information

Backed up your files lately? Just a friendly reminder to be sure all your important school-related files are saved to the network (your “H-drive”), not just to your computer’s hard drive. I know we’ve said it before, but some things are worth repeating.

Have a great weekend,

Anne

Friday, April 16, 2010

Gem ~ a website or application that might work well for you or your students

I’ve mentioned some Google search tips before, but this piece from the New York Times highlights a few more. Need a quick way to search for something within a particular website? Want to search for information about something that happened within a particular range of dates? Need to find the area code for a location? Read the article to find out how to do all of these things and more. (http://www.nytimes.com/external/gigaom/2010/04/02/02gigaom-10-simple-google-search-tricks-58674.html)

Idea ~ a way to enhance your LFS lessons with technology

Are your students looking for copyright-friendly images or music to include in projects? Copyright Friendly Images and Music is a wiki produced by Sheldon Workshops. It provides links to several sites that contain collections of images, clipart, and music that are either in the public domain or have Creative Commons licenses, which allow them to be used as long as the owner is cited. A few of the sites, unfortuately, are currently blocked on our network, but there are at least some that are accessible in each category. (http://sheldonworkshops.wikispaces.com/Copyright+Friendly+Images+and+Music)

Fact ~ Just a bit of information

Yesterday Ning, a web service that allows anyone to create their own social networking site, announced that they will no longer be offering their free services (Ning will still exist, but only as a paid service). I’m a member of several Nings, the owners of which are now scrambling to figure out what to do next. Unfortunately in our current economy, this is not the first time this has happened. Small companies come up with great ideas and offer at least portions of the service for free to attract users. Teachers jump on them, because, well, teachers like free stuff. Some of these companies survive and grow and others realize that if they want to eat they’re going to have to start charging (or putting ads on the sites, which for teachers can be just as bad). So, my lesson from all of this is to be careful when counting on any free web tools provided by companies that do not have a known track record. Use them, enjoy them, but be aware that they could be gone tomorrow….and always have a Plan B.

Have a great weekend!

Anne

Friday, April 9, 2010

Gem ~ a website or application that might work well for you or your students

Looking for a new way for students to interact with vocabulary? Try Lexipedia. The tagline for the site is “where words have meaning.” Type in a word (in English, Spanish, German, French, Dutch, or Italian) and you’ll be presented with a color-coded concept map of the word and other related words. The colors refer to parts of speech, which are then listed in tabs on the left side of the screen. Mousing over a word brings up a small window with a short definition, usage, and an audio file to hear the word’s pronunciation. This is a great way for students to explore new words. (http://www.lexipedia.com/)

Idea ~ a way to enhance your LFS lessons with technology

I’ve shared quite a few resources for finding and making graphic organizers, but how about making your graphic organizers 3-D? Larry Ferlazzo has created a list of the best teacher resources for foldables. When I was teaching first grade my students made countless four-folds, eight-folds, and  flip books, but these sites provide lots of ingenious ways to fold paper so that students can interact with content in a new way. (http://larryferlazzo.edublogs.org/2009/06/07/the-best-teacher-resources-for-foldables/)

Fact ~ Just a bit of information

Earth Day is April 22nd. I’ve been collecting some links with information and activities for all grade levels. Discovery Ed Streaming also has many videos related to Earth Day. Don’t forget to check out our own Rec. Department’s E-Day activities as well.

Have a great weekend!

Anne

Friday, March 26, 2010

Gem ~ a website or application that might work well for you or your students

Live Binders is a new way to share resources with your students. The site requires that you create an account, but it’s completely free and only requires an email address. Once you’ve set up your account you can create an unlimited number of binders. Each binder contains tabs that display webpages, documents, photos, or videos. This can be a handy way to organize resources so that students have everything they need in one place. Binders can be shared publicly or privately. Click here for an example of a private binder I’ve created for a first grade class studying elephants. Because the binder is private, I am able to include a video from Discovery Education Streaming on one of the tabs. The access key you’ll need to view the binder can be found in the email I sent with today’s TGIF link. If you don’t get the email, ask a co-worker or email me and I’ll send it to you. (http://livebinders.com/)

Idea ~ a way to enhance your LFS lessons with technology

Awesome Highlighter is a web tool that allows you to highlight portions of a webpage and make notes about them. Students can highlight new vocabulary, important content, or whatever they need to remember. They can also add “sticky notes” to a page and jot down their thoughts as they’re reading. When they’re finished, Awesome Highlighter gives them a unique URL (web address) that will take them back to their highlighted version of the page. Here’s a highlighted version of one of the elephant pages from above: http://awurl.com/XrHTDQF2Q (http://www.awesomehighlighter.com/)

Fact ~ Just a bit of information

This isn’t a fact…it’s another resource. But I just found it and I really want to share it…so, to stick with the F theme, we’ll call it a find. TypeWith.Me is a website that allows for real-time collaboration on a document. Simply go to the website, click on the link to create a new document, and you’re ready to start. Share the link to the page with anyone via email or by posting it on a webpage. As each contributor types, the text appears on the document for everyone to see, highlighted in a different color for each person. The document can be saved and it’s easy to go back and restore to a previous version. Finished documents can be exported in several different formats. (Just a note:  When I tried this morning, the export to Word or PDF wasn’t working. You can always copy and paste the finished work into an offline document, though.) This could be a great tool for collaborative story writing, for students working on a group project, or for teams of teachers working on something when they can’t be in the same room. (http://typewith.me/)

Have a great weekend!

Anne

Friday, March 19, 2010

Gem ~ a website or application that might work well for you or your students

I’m not sure about you, but the 2010 census form arrived in our mailbox this week. You can’t listen to the radio or watch TV without hearing about the census. But do our students know what it’s all about? Scholastic has put together a collection of resources related to the census. There are lesson plans for grades K-12, including versions for ESL/ELL, as well as information for families, and an interactive site for elementary kids. (http://www.scholastic.com/census/)

Idea ~ a way to enhance your LFS lessons with technology

PicBite is an online service that allows you to upload images and add text. This could be an interesting way to present an activator to your class or have them summarize a lesson. You’ll be provided with a link to your finished picture or you could take a screenshot and save the image that way. Here’s a quick example I made. (http://picbite.com)

Fact ~ Just a bit of information

Just a reminder…anytime you enter a request into the MASD Help Desk site for a problem with your computer  it’s important to provide the number of the computer. This helps our staff to identify the machine and sometimes even enables them to fix it remotely. The number that we need is the inventory number. It will begin with a two-digit year followed by a number, for example 07-555. It will generally be found on a label or even written on the computer itself. Be sure that you provide the number on the computer (the processor) and not the monitor (except for machines that are all one piece).  (http://helpdesk.mbgsd.org/)

Have a great weekend!

Anne