Inspiring Writing. Educational Technology and Mobile Learning: Excellent Rubric for Using Digital Portfolios in Class. December 22, 2014 Planning to integrate digital portfolios in your instruction? This list of tools is a good place to start with. It contains some useful web applications that you and your students can use to easily create e-portfolios. Using e-portfolios with your students has several educational pluses that include: Web 2.0 for the Under 13s crowd. Jul 05 As I lamented in my last post, many of the fabulous Web tools out there are restricted to users 13 and over. This limits what Elementary/Primary schools students can access online to create content to collaborate. To save others at school some time, then, I have compiled a list of popular/well known Web tools that can and can’t be used by children under 13 – 1), so we are legally covered in what we are allowing our students to use and 2), so they know what is available.
Please note that generally the sites that allow for under 13s still ask for parental permission ( even Edmodo if you haven’t read the Terms of Use) so a solid school user agreement is needed to use these tools. Some of the sites are not US based so are not bound by COPPA and CIPA regulations. The difficulty with some sites’ policies is that they don’t all state emphatically that Under 13s are not allowed. Contact sites if you are unclear what their policies are saying. Macintosh Accent Codes. View Windows ALT Codes | View Mac Extended Codes | Mac Character Palette This page list codes for accented letters and other characters. The list is organized by type. These tables show select codes only, not all possible codes.
This Page Letters with Accents - (e.g. ó, ò, ñ) Other Foreign Characters - (e.g. ç, ¿, ß) Currency Symbols - (e.g. ¢, £, ¥) Math Symbols - (e.g. ±, °, ÷) Other Punctuation - (e.g. &, ©, §) Links to External Resources Extra Accents: Extended Keyboard for OS X - (e.g. Ā, ý, č) New Page Extra Math and Phonetic Symbols: Character Pallete (e.g. ə,ŋ,∀∈,♁,♇ ) New Page Letters with Accents This list is organized by Accent type. For the Template, the symbol "V" means any vowel. Example 1: To input the letter ó, hold down the Option key, then the E key. Example 2: To input the letter Ó, hold down the Option key, then the E key. Other Accent Marks See the Extended Keyboard Page for additional accent marks Top of Page Other Foreign Characters Other Characters Currency Symbols. Tons of Classroom Examples Using Augmented Reality with @Aurasma - A Complete How-To Guide!
How to Use Augmented Reality in Your Classroomthis post is read best via a desktop due to the embedded video content Augmented reality allows someone to add another layer to an existing image. For example, imagine holding your phone over a poster on the wall as if you were going to take a photo of that poster, and then instantly a video starts playing to offer you additional information about that particular poster. Pretty cool, right? The first time it happens, it seems like magic. After watching the video below, I knew I had to figure this augmented reality thing out.
Aurasma is the app I use to create augmented reality. Sharing Aurasma with My Husband's Colleagues Not only is augmented reality amazing, it's also free and easy to do. While waiting for our table to be called for dinner, we were discussing the nice decorations displayed around the reception hall. His colleagues began instantly brainstorming how this could be used for their business. Augmented Reality Vocabulary Step 1: iDig #046: Teach Your Students to Make Documentaries.
iDig #046: Teach Your Students to Make Documentaries Hide Player Documentary filmmaker and video teacher Jackie Valenzuela re-joins the show to discuss teaching students to make short documentary films. On the podcast she discusses every step in the process from getting an idea to writing a two column shooting script and treatment – and then shooting and editing a project. Jackie also presents some great sample projects that she uses with her students.
And maybe the best part of the podcast are the practical tips she has for students (and teachers!) Show Hosts: Jonathan Furst Here’s our Show Notes Special Guests: Jackie Valenzuela Give us some feedback! 42 views, 4 today What do you think? The Ultimate Word Wall. 170 Online Ebooks for Young Kids. All my favorite ebooks! Some of the ebooks are from YouTube. I use Safeshare to remove the ads and suggested videos from YouTube. Read more about Safeshare.tv here. The newest e-book webmix: Ebook Read To Me- 16 great stories read to the kids National Geographic Kids- 37 non-fiction magazines for kids. B&N Storytime Online- 16 Classic Books read by the author of the book Ebook #1- 23 Books read by actors Ebook Set 2- 35 online books from various sites Starfall Books- 42 themed books from Starfall Like this: Like Loading... 33 Great Apps for Storytelling and Creativity. 2013 Update… Here are the main apps I suggest for storytelling.
Some of them are actual bookmaking apps, some are apps for creating stories in various ways and others are apps I would use to help kids plan out a story. I have listed them in the order of importance for my classroom. I think the first 10 on the list are a must have for all elementary classrooms. Educreations FREE- (example HERE and HERE) There is also a web version of this tool StoryBuddy 2 $4.99- (example HERE and HERE) Explain Everything $2.99- (example HERE and HERE and HERE) Toontastic FREE*- (example HERE and HERE) Feltboard $2.99- (examples HERE and HERE and HERE) Skitch FREE- for labeling (example HERE and HERE) There is also a web version of this tool Popplet $4.99- (example HERE and HERE) There is a “lite” version of the app and is also web based Tellagami- FREE- Much like Voki but in app form.
Write About This $3.99- creates prompts for kids and reads the prompt to them Sock Puppets FREE* (post with examples HERE) My Story. Inquiring Minds: Tackling The Process Of Inquiry In The Clasroom. In a story last year about Tony Wagner, author of The Global Achievement Gap, they quote him as saying, “The culture of schooling as we know it is radically at odds with the culture of learning that produces innovators.” We can tell you the kinds of environments where we know kids are excited, enthusiastic, and open to inquiry and discovery – it happens naturally for young children almost anytime they are given a little freedom to explore, experiment, and create. However, the structures we set up in school, many ingrained in us from preservice texts, and even before (anticipatory set anyone?)
, often have schools doing things that take away those very opportunities. Inquiry In The Classroom A couple of years ago, I started to simply turn my social studies lessons upside down so we could practice inquiry. My 8th graders had not had much practice. Depending on the unit we are studying, the students share their favorite questions (according to them) in a Google spreadsheet. Level 1 Questions. iPad apps for reading? Effective Word Work Time.
Google and Dropbox. Project Search. Close Reading Picture Books. When we think of close reading, we most often think about dense passages that, at first glance, seem like they require a magnifying glass, if not a sturdy pair of reading glasses, to analyze. But, the goal of close reading is not to read and analyze as many words as possible, but to engage in critical thinking about a text and its ideas. And, particularly in elementary school, that includes illustrations. Illustrators make many of the same choices authors make. They draw with purpose and create scenes and images that convey the arc of a narrative as well as the story’s deeper meaning. Their choices reveal emotion, energy, detail, and theme. (One important note: just like choosing text to read, picture books for close reading should be chosen carefully; look for books that have powerful, memorable illustrations.)
Here’s how to engage your students in close reading with illustrations: Pictures with a Purpose When you’re using a picture book, the purpose is still paramount. Questions are King. 1116707397452. Authors organize their information intentionally. They present their ideas in an organized pattern. This is called text structure. Understanding text structure empowers readers. When students can identify a specific structure, they know how to categorize all the details coming at them. And seeing relationships between all these ideas improves overall comprehension. Recognizing the structures of all texts Literature (narrative text) always reveals its plot in a chronological sequence. However, informational text (expository writing) can be presented as chronological, categorical, compare-contrast, cause-effect, problem-solution, or proposition-support.
Because informational text structure is not predictable, students have to read for more than just ideas and details. However, recognizing text structure doesn't come naturally. Revealing mentor texts For more examples of mentor text: We can help students discern what structure a text is written in by noting key words. Scaffolding text structure. Educational Technology and Mobile Learning: A Handful of Great Apps for literacy Education. Help Center — Bitsboard. The moment you "share" a board the board gets uploaded to the Bitsboard catalog.
Sharing boards accomplishes three things. 1. It allows you to share boards with other Bitsboard users. All the other user has to know is the name of your board so that when they search for it in the Bitsboard catalog they can download it with one click. Teachers love sharing boards with their students for example. 2.
Mom's love creating custom boards to help their kids excel in school. 3. When you share a board, we instantly create a copy of it online. TIP: If you have already published a board on the Catalog you can always update it by first making changes to the board on your device and then clicking on "Share" again. iPad Apps for Education - Jeffreys Grove Elementary School. Teaching Students To Respond To Digital Media. A medium is simply a vehicle for communicating an idea. From cave paintings to single-media texts and paintings, to dynamic multimedia pages and complex data visualizations, these media are dependent on prevailing local technology.
As the technology evolves, the media evolve in parallel. This makes the concept of digital literacy critical, something the Common Core standards in the United States hint at but never seem to flesh out. Literacy is the ability to make sense of something, and can be reduced to decoding (e.g, through phonics) and reading comprehension (e.g., through thinking strategies) at its most fundamental level.
Digital literacy is indeed about decoding and comprehension, and it’s be difficult to argue that media are increasing in complexity. But that doesn’t mean that modern digital media don’t place unique demands on “readers” that consume them. Argument Analysis Below is an image I used in my English classroom. What would it make sense to think about or read next? Subtext X Custom ePub. While there will never be a replacement for a paper book with dog-eared pages, hand written notes in the margins, a broken spine and a proudly worn cover with a hint of dirt and stains, there is an exciting new option to transform the practice of reading to make it more social and collaborative.
Subtext is an intriguing iPad application that allows users to read books collaboratively. While reading, participants can insert text, emotions, questions, links and thoughts into the margins of the book. When other readers jump into the text they can see the notations and reply to the existing thoughts in a discussion thread that is neatly tucked away into the margins of the text.
Subtext Promotional Video Technical Setup for Classroom Applications: Subtext allows readers to connect to their Google bookshelf and in fact they login with either Google or Facebook credentials. Custom ePub files & collaborative reading: Why use Subtext? Do Your Students Know How To Search?
The Connected Student Series: There is a new digital divide on the horizon. It is not based around who has devices and who does not, but instead the new digital divide will be based around students who know how to effectively find and curate information and those who do not. Helene Blowers has come up with seven ideas about the new digital divide – four of them, the ones I felt related to searching, are listed below. The New Digital Divide: In an age of information abundance learning to effectively search is one of the most important skills most teachers are NOT teaching. Teachers – especially in the elementary grades -need to develop a shared vocabulary around the skill of searching. Here are some of the searching skills and vocabulary we should be teaching students : Quotation Marks: Students should always use quotes to search for an exact word or set of words.
Example: “The Great Chicago Fire” Dashes (or minus sign): Example: Great Chicago Fire -soccer Two Periods: Site Search: 600 Other Ways To Say Common Things: Improving Student Vocabulary - Your students are bright, but they don’t always sound like it. Their diction is full of cliche and emaciated language that doesn’t reflect their inner voice, nor does it indicate their vocabulary level. You want your students to use specific language that demonstrates intended meaning rather than the first word that popped into their head, but you want to do more than hand them a thesaurus and tell them to “figure it out.” While the following graphics aren’t going to make that happen, they can certainly play a role if posted to your classroom blog, shared on a student-teacher pinterest page, hung on a classroom wall, or reformatted, printed, hole-punched, and stored in a student binder.
Google Earth Lit Trip Template. Literacy ShopTalk. 7 Tips for Citing an App in MLA Format. Eli Review. Digital Storyteller. Memofon. ReadWorks.org. Inspire My Kids | Inspirational Stories, Videos and Quotes for Children. 5 Amazing Ways To Collaborate With Another Class. The Future in Reading | Magic inside. Metrics included.™ National Council of Teachers of English - Homepage. iMovie Movie Trailers across the content areas.
5 Amazing Ways To Collaborate With Another Class. Subtext X Custom ePub. Session 1 Room 1. Digital Storytelling. Future Imperfect | A tryst of teaching, technology, and language learning. Beyond the Book Report: Ten Alternatives. Redirect?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.slj. Clarity Through Brevity: Integrating Six-Word Memoirs. This I Believe in the Classroom. Enhanced English Teacher — A blog about using technology in an English classroom. Ditch the paper and call in assignments with Google Voice.