TECHY TEACHER – WHAT THE TECH?

Skype

Skype videoconferencing software allows students to meet—virtually—with someone anywhere in the world, in real time, and at no cost. With Skype, the classroom walls open so students can learn from a worldwide audience, connect with other cultures, and expand their knowledge

 Skype allows users to communicate with peers by audio, video, and instant messaging over the Internet. Students can learn from other students, connect with other cultures, and expand their knowledge and perspectives. All that is needed is a computer with a high-speed Internet connection, a Webcam, and a headset with a microphone.

Getting Started and Using Skype 

• You need an Internet connected computer with a webcam and a headset with a microphone.
• Download and install Skype onto your computer.
• Follow the tutorial for downloading and using Skype.
• Read the following helpful resources
• Using Skype in Schools – Some Tips -  Read these helpful tips, including suggestions on using Skype usernames at school and home.
• Skype: Talk to Anyone, Anywhere for Free - Watch this “techtorial” or print the text version to learn the basics of Skype.

Curricular Uses for Skype

• Field Trips -  Bring the field trip to your classroom using Skype.
• Foreign Language Study- Practice foreign languages with native speakers.
• Interviews – Have students conduct interviews or be interviewed. Place students in groups and have them send the Skype feed to the classroom for all to watch.
• Author Visits/ Guest Lecturers -  Invite writers or other distinguished guests to your classroom via Skype.
• Cultural Exchange – Learn about another culture or community.
• Inclusion – Help a classmate join the classroom from home.
• Present a Performance - Whether your class performs a play, demonstrates a science experiment, or presents the results of a class project, share their works with other classes, parents, or other interested people.
• Share Field Trips with Others - If your class embarks on a field trip, connect with others to share the experience.

Skype Ideas for Educators 

• Professional Development - Access professional development opportunities, such as watching conference presentations via Skype
• Share Students’ Work with Parents – Provide parents a first-hand look at their children’s learning via Skype.
• Receive Teaching Feedback – Invite a mentor teacher to watch you teach via Skype and receive valuable feedback.

Finding Collaborators Using Skype 

There are many ways to connect with others using Skype in classrooms. 

• ePALS - Sign up for a free account, then find other teachers and classes around the globe using Skype.
• Skype an Author Into Your Library or Classroom - Connect with authors through Skype. Short sessions are free, while longer sessions are subject to a fee set by each author.
• Skype in Schools - List yourself or find others in this directory just for educators seeking Skype collaboration.
• Skype In The Classroom – Collaborate on educational projects with teachers and classes all over the world. Take part in the newest projects, explore all projects or create your own.
• Global SchoolNet - Connect teachers and students around the world. Browse to find something of interest or start your own project.

April 16, 2012

Voicethread Resources

�
(voicethread.com)

Resources

Voicethread is an interactive,  online slide show.  Students can comment on their slides and as they talk they can use a pencil to write on the screen to further explain their reasoning. For example, third graders could be drawing and commenting on arrays to explain how they would solve the array by grouping or splitting the array in some way that allows them to come up with the answer, other than using a simple multiplication sentence. Furthermore, students can comment on each others’ work and people around the world with Voicethread accounts can also comment on student work should you opt to open the voicethread to public viewing. It is easy to use and it is a great collaboration tool!

PLEASE NOTE: There is an educational version of this tool located HERE and if your school is interested your library can purchase a license with 50 users and your school can share the tool throughout the year.

Learn It In 5 Videos:

• Overview of Voice Thread
• Voicethread in Action

Voicethread.com Support Page: http://voicethread.com/support/howto/Basics/

Ideas for Using Voicethread in the Classroom:

• Using Voicethread to Promote Learning Engagement and Success for All Students  – This article has some great examples of how you can use Voicethread in the classroom to provide a platform for success for all of your students.
• 100 ways to use Voicethread in the classroom - this is an actual voicethread so you can see how it would work. Hear how teachers around the world are thinking of using it!
• Voicethread in Education Wiki
• Voicethread PDF Tutorial by Wesely Fryer – Survive and Thrive (SpeedofCreativity.org)
• 7 Things Your Should Know about Voicethread (PDF)
• Setting_Up_a_VoiceThread_for_Education_Account (PDF)

Student Samples:

• Database of articles about successful VoiceThread projects
• DocuDrama Learning Lab - From Bernajean Porter

• Human Impact on the Boreal Forest ( Grade 2)

• Grade 3 -4 Math – Using arrays in multiplication

•  Math – adding mixed fraction

•  Residential Schools – Grade Five and Six

April 11, 2011

Our 21st Century Learners

A Vision of K-12 Students

Students will use engaging technologies in collaborative, inquiry-based learning environments with teachers who are willing and able to use technology’s power to assist them in transforming knowledge and skills into products, solutions and new information.

What is a 21st Century Learner?

You may have heard the term “digital natives” to describe today’s students and  “digital immigrants” to describe today’s educators.  Teachers are working with students whose entire lives have been immersed in the 21^st century media culture. 

Today’s students are digital learners – they literally take in the world via the filter of computing devices:  the cellular phones, handheld gaming devices, PDAs, and laptops they take everywhere, plus the computers, TVs, and game consoles at home. 

A survey by the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation found that young people (ages 8-18) mainline electronic media for more than six hours a day, on average.  Many are multitasking – listening to music while surfing the Web or instant-messaging friends while playing a video game. 

Even toddlers utilize multimedia devices and the Internet with tools such as handheld video games like Leapster and web sites such as www.PBSkids.org and www.Nick.com. Preschoolers easily navigate these electronic, multimedia resources on games in which they learn colors, numbers, letters, spelling, and more complex tasks such as mixing basic colors to create new colors, problem-solving activities, and reading.

However, as Dr. Michael Wesch points out, although today’s students understand how to access and utilize these tools, many of them are used for entertainment purposes only, and the students are not really media literate. 

We need to use the tools to enable our students to become truly media literate as they function in an online collaborative, research-based environment – researching, analyzing, synthesizing, critiquing, evaluating and creating new knowledge!

(From: http://www.21stcenturyschools.com/What_is_21st_Century_Education.htm)

Videos To Watch

Tropfest is the world’s largest short film festival. This video, shot entirely with cell phones, was a winner.

May 12, 2010

Additional Resources

Telling Stories

• Cogdogroo -  – 50 ways to tell a story.  This site goes over web based tools you can use to create your own web-based story.
• ToonDoo – have students create their own comic strips to pull main ideas or concepts from their work.

Collaboration Projects

•  Mathtrain.TV  –  a free educational “kids teaching kids” project from Mr. Marcos & his students at Lincoln Middle School in Santa Monica, CA.
• Creating Global Collaborative Projects - (K. Brown)

Special Education and Technology

• LD Online 

The Basics About….

Educause Learning Initiative (Great PDF Handouts) - 7 Things Your Should Know About Series:

• Google Apps 
• Wikipedia
• RSS Feeds )
• Digital Storytelling
• Google Earth
• Ebooks
• Blogs
• Podcasting
• The Flipped Classroom
• Skype
• Microblogging
• Voicethread

April 21, 2010

Wikis

•  Wikis in Plain English - A Common Craft video

A wiki is an online document that can be edited by multiple authors.

“A wiki is software that allows users to create, edit, and link web pages easily. Wikis are often used to create collaborative websites and to power community websites. These wiki websites are often also referred to as wikis.” (Wikipedia)

Recommend these for creating educational wikis:

 - Wikispaces - Offers free ad-free wikis for K-12 educators

 - PBWorks (previously know as Peanut Butter Wiki), Ad-free for educators

Getting Started in Wikispaces:

Features – http://www.wikispaces.com/site/features

Getting Started – http://help.wikispaces.com/file/view/K-12_handout_052610.pdf

Wiki While You Work: An Introduction to Wikis in Education – http://pdpresentertoolkit.wikispaces.com/

Wikispaces for K–12 educators (Teacher Help) – http://help.wikispaces.com/Teacher+Help

Wiki Resources:

• A Wiki Walk Through by TeachersFirst – A GREAT OVERVIEW!
• Wikis in Education (PDF)
•  Wiki What? from our Introduction to Web 2.0 Tools
•  Wikis from WebTools4u2use
• 7 Things You Should Know About Wikis
•  Wild about Wikis
• Examples of Wikis In K-12 Education

Examples of Wikis:

• My PIC Wiki
•  Mr. Hill’s Classroom Wiki
•  InTech’s Provincial Mentorship Project Wiki
• Meet The Stars: Books & Web 2.0 – Teacher Librarians’ PD wiki
• Examples of Wikis In K-12 Education

April 21, 2010