Project

This week I introduced an assignment that requires students to use Audacity. They are writing "This I Believe" essays, recording them in Audacity, and saving them to the public folder. I plan on playing these recorded essays in class next week. Each student will be assigned one essay to respond to in the form of a letter to the student/writer. Within this response, students will identify nonfiction elements such as main idea, purpose, audience, author's viewpoint, etc. I will use each student's letter to determine if he/she has mastered the learning targets for nonfiction writing. I did something similar to this last year, but I did not use Audacity. Students were required to listen carefully to the essay as it was read aloud in class, but they did not have the recorded essay to use as they identified the various nonfiction elements. I love that the students will now have access to these essays in the public folder. This may be my final project for this class; I'll see how it goes next week.

Wikispaces

I have used Wikispaces this year to create a space for students to post their Vokis. Students created an avatar of a book character and made a recording about the book. They placed these Vokis on the Wikispace, so other students could learn about the books. I then created a link from my website to the Wikispace. It was difficult for some students to remember passwords and to follow directions for embedding their Vokis on the Wikispace. Also, I had to send an email to each student in order to invite him/her to join the Wikispace. However, it turned out to be a great way for students to learn about other books. The disadvantage to a Wikispace is that it is difficult for some students to understand how to add material to the wiki. Also, some students delete other students' work by mistake. This was not a problem with Google Docs, which is great for Word documents and Power Point presentations. However, when students need to share information (like a Voki or a Glog) a wiki seems like the best way to do this. I will continue to use Google Docs for group projects, and I will use Wikispaces for students to share individual assignments.

Google Reader

I added the following feeds to my Google Reader account from Google News: education and technology, Henry VIII, teaching grammar, and Tom Sawyer. I also selected "education and schools" from The New York Times site. Sometimes I find articles that relate to the novels we are studying in language arts, which is why I selected the Henry VIII and the Tom Sawyer feeds. It's always interesting to share these articles with the my students, and it's a great way to connect their reading to nonfiction writing. I have never used Google Reader, but using it to find articles, podcasts, and blogs related to literature is something I plan to try.

iTunes

I think I am one of the only people who does not have an iPod. I have a Zune, so I have never used iTunes. I couldn't access the video that explains iTunes U on You Tube (it said it had been removed), but I did find a video on the iTunes website. iTunes U is definitely something I would use in my classroom; it is a great way to share information with students. It reminds me of United Streaming. However, I don't know how I would do this without having it downloaded on my school computer (unless I am missing something). Even after watching the video, I couldn't figure out how to search for content on iTunes U, but I know there is relevant information that I could use in my classroom. This is definitely something I would like to learn more about in class next week. I'm sure my students will be able to explain this to me as well.

Voice Thread

This I Believe Assignment

Above is the Voice Thread I created for use in my language arts classroom. I am going to ask my students to write a "This I Believe" essay, and I thought that it would be fun for them to record their essays on Voice Thread. I shared one of my favorite essays by Bill Gates. I recorded "Unleashing the Power of Creativity" on Voice Thread. I have had some experience recording in Voice Thread, so it was fairly simple to create. Our librarian has been recording information on her website, and teachers and students have been replying to these Voice Threads. It seems like a great way to share writing. The example I found was called "Prepositional Poems and Historical Fiction Projects." Junior high students read their poetry and children's books as images of this work was displayed on the screen. This is how I see myself using Voice Thread. I plan for my students to read their work and upload art work or photographs that complement their writing. Here is the link to "Prepositional Poems and Historical Fiction Projects":

Prepositional Poems and Historical Fiction Projects





Here is my embedded Voice Thread:

Podcast

I created a podcast using Audacity, and it was extremely easy to record. I used my new tablet, which has a built-in microphone. My students are working on nonfiction presentations, and I wanted to give them some tips and reminders about what to include in their Power Point/SMART Notebook presentations. Of course, they have all of this information in writing, but I think listening to these directions again may be helpful for some students. I tried to put the podcast on my website using remote apps, but I couldn't figure out how to edit my website from home. Is this possible? I am going to put the recording on my website tomorrow at school and ask students to review this before presenting to the class. I may also include the podcast on Progress Book. I use sound recorder to provide feedback to students on their writing, but I have never created a podcast in Audacity for my website until now. I like this tool and will probably use it again.

Skype

I just finished my first Skype experience. It was extremely easy to create an account and Skype. I didn't really know who to Skype with, so my husband created an account. We had a conversation on the internet (even though we were in the same house). I think this would be great to use to communicate with people who I do not see often. It's definitely an awesome tool. I can't believe that it's free! It would be fun if students could use this to communicate with authors. I don't have many other ideas yet about how to use this in the classroom, but I love the idea of using it to talk with friends and family. The language arts teachers just received tablets, and I used this to Skype. It's perfect because it has a built-in webcam and mic.