How and Why Teachers Should Blog

In my readings today, I came across an additional source about why teachers should blog as well as why they should have their students blogging. I posted the article on Twitter, and given it attracted "favorites" and "retweets," thought I should share the information here. Among the reasons listed for teachers to introduce their students to blogging are these, in paraphrased format:

1) Encourage Collaboration Among Students

2) Teach Students How to Write Blogging Comments to Learn How to Give Feedback

This point reminded me of a video students in Linda Yollis created about how to write good blogging comments, which I am embedding here--a reminder for teachers when they respond to blog posts and a video to use with students once they are introduced to blogging.



 
3) Provide Evidence of Student Achievement

4) Encourage Students to Write and Gain Practice with Writing

To access the article, click on the word cloud above, which I found in the article, "How (And Why) Teachers Should Blog." Do you truly believe teachers should blog and that they should teach blogging principles to their students?

Additionally, this morning I came across an excellent blog post written by Lynn Hilt, a former K-6 elementary school principal and now the instructional technology coach for her school district. Click on the image to access the post:

Lynn offers links to a variety of resources in the post. Consider checking some of these out.

Will Chamberlain, an elementary school teacher maintains the blog, Comments4Kids, which is an excellent way for teachers and their students to respond to students who are blogging and to make global connections.

So, are you convinced teachers and students should be blogging?

And, last did you know October is Connected Educators' Month? No better way to connect than finding teachers who want to do cross-class blogging projects.

What Are Your Favorite Web 2.0 Tools? Which Do You Want to Use?

Thought I would query others to find out about their favorite Web 2.0 tools and which they want to try out or use more often. To start, I should list mine, and tell why I use them.

• Twitter--use it to learn from other professionals and to keep current on new trends, research, and updates in the education field.

• Diigo--could not live without this tool to bookmark and tag sites I want archived. By keeping the Diigo Diigolet extension on my toolbar, I can easily bookmark sites. This enables me to return to sites on any computer by going into my Diigo Library online and looking up the sites using a "tag for searching" or using a "List" that I created to categorize bookmarks. I now have over 5,000 sites bookmarked. As much as that is, I can easily find the sites using the tags or list feature. 
• Although I also use Pinterest to bookmark sites, I don't find it as functional as Diigo for locating sites I want to go back to at a moment's notice. I pin to boards, but if I need to find a bunch of sites on a related topic quickly, Diigo's indexing system with tags and lists works better for me, which I find weird given I tend to be a visual learner, and Pinterest is a highly visual medium. 
• Facebook--although I use Facebook to connect with friends, I also use it to follow many professional pages, which like Twitter, keeps me updated on professional development. 
• Blogger--for creating posts, such as this one, and reading others' posts and commenting.
• Other blogging platforms--really like Kidblog as a way for students in elementary and middle school to get going with blogging. For high school and college students, recommend Blogger or WordPress, though know many higher schoolers flock to Tumblr. Although I have a Tumblr account, I use it primarily to follow others' Tumblr blogs. Know some teachers also use Edublogs, which is a division of WordPress, for class blogs and for individual students to blog. 
• Google Communities--increasing I am turning to Google Communities for information related to the field of education, but also have joined other Communities such as photography ones.
• Animoto, GoAnimate, Bitstrips, Storybird, and VoiceThread are some of the Web 2.0 sites I go to make digital stories, or as with VoiceThread, to also create interactive slide shows. I also like HaikuDeck, which is an iPad app, but is in a beta release for use on the Web, and have used the website version that way. 
• For creating word clouds, I use Wordle and Tagul. Here is a word cloud generated with Tagul, using this post to create it:

• Wikispaces is the wiki tool I use with classes, though I have also created class wikis using Google Sites.
• Although I have used GlogsterEdu and Padlet, I have not used them as often as my colleagues who teach K-12. I like Glogster for younger students to create an interactive bulletin board, and Padlet as a collaborative chalkboard, Post-it note site.
• Google Drive and Google Sites--are the two Web 2.0 tools I use daily. For these, I am forever thankful to Google for providing free tools to author with and allow for online collaboration.
• Also liking Google Hangouts for video calling, but realize many schools still rely on Skype, and think the Skype in the Classroom site is an excellent way for teachers to find Skype projects. 
• YouTube is my favorite video tool for collaboration. I subscribe to several YouTube channels and individuals, and also save my favorite YouTubes in categories. Also, turn to YouTube if I need to upload a video I created. Occasionally, I have used Vimeo, but YouTube remains my favorite for having fast access to an enormous collection of videos.
• Dropbox and Evernote are tools I use in addition to Google Drive for cloud storage.
• Flickr is my go-to-tool for storing photos and finding others' photos that are Creative Commons, free to use.  

I am sure I left out some favorites, but believe I have included the ones I use regularly as well as ones that I have seen teachers and other educators use often.

So what are some of your regulars and favorite Web 2.0 tools? What are ones you want to try out for professional use and with students?

PicCollage and PicMonkey: Let Your Creative Juices Flow, Have Fun

PicCollage is an app for phones and tablets, and as the name implies, is used to make collages.

Here is an image of 5th graders creating a collage with PicCollage:

https://twitter.com/mrbadura/status/382240347520122880/photo/1

PicMonkey is a free web-based tool for editing photos, and offers lots of free editing options to transform your photos. You can also create collages with this web tool.

http://www.picmonkey.com/

http://pic-collage.com/

Let me know if you use either of Pic Collage or PicMonkey, and if you use them in the classroom. Check them out if you're not already using them.

Using the Vine App to Promote Literacy

These Vines are from Mr. Schu, a phenomenal elementary school librarian. Click to watch the Vines in action. Vine is a tool for making very short videos that loop, and replay. Although used for many purposes, Mr. Schu found a way to integrate the app into the school setting.




First graders learning to resize and cite images.



To learn about Mr. Schu, and all the fabulous things he does, follow his blog and follow him on Twitter. Click on images below to access each.

Blog:

Twitter (and there's a reason he has over 13,000 followers--he shares great resources daily)

If you have a chance to explore some of his resources, let us know what you think. Would you consider using the Vine app in your teaching?

Learning to Use VoiceThread in EDUC584

This is a practice VoiceThread we created in EDUC584, spring 2012. That semester, we Skyped with authors and a few teachers. We photographed and video recorded the sessions. We used pictures from our Skype sessions to create this practice VoiceThread. This one was used just to demonstrate how the site works and is not intended as a finished product. The VoiceThread is being embedded, but following it are hyperlinks to VoiceThreads that teachers taking EDUC584 created for use in the classroom or with their students.




This link goes to a VoiceThread a teacher created in which her students do the voice recordings.

Ms. Field's First Grade Animal VoiceThread

This one was created by a teacher to tell students about herself at the beginning of the school year.

Jamee Introduces Herself to Her Students

Maribeth's VoiceThread with Her Students' Drawings (Pre-School)

How might you consider using VoiceThread in your own teaching? The site has some samples for review, so you can also check those for ideas. Here is a link to some that I saved for reference.

The site also showcases VoiceThreads on a monthly, weekly, and daily basis.

Here's a link to those showcased this past month.
Here's a link to ones showcased during a week.
Last, these VoiceThreads were showcased on a specific day.

Overall, what is your impression of this tool, which can be used on computers, tablets, and even phones? What ideas do you have for using VoiceThread with students?

Learning to Use Storybird in EDUC 584

Storybird is an easy tool to use once you start playing around with it. As with other tools, the first time around will be trial and error, but once you get the knack of it, it will be easier to use the next time around. First, get the knack of it before you use it with students.

Once you open your account, go to setting, and note how you can set the age bracket to filter the kinds of illustrations that students will be able to use. This is an important feature to use when implementing the program in the school setting. I created the below using an age setting for elementary students.

Here is a quick example. Note when using Storybird, once a theme and illustration set are chosen, you begin by creating your cover for the book. You  use the + sign in the program to advance to the next page, but each time, you need to hit the Save button to save a page before advancing to your next page. You simply drag and drop the illustration you want on the page, and then use the space for writing text to compose your story line for that page. Once done with the page, remember to hit Save and then hit the + sign to advance to the next page. When your story is completed, go to the Menu to save it, and you will be prompted with specific options. Once your story is successfully processed, you can go back in and get the embed code to copy so you can embed your story in a blog post. You can also grab the URL for the story if you prefer to use that to direct viewers to your story on the Storybird site.

To view this story, use the full-screen option, which is in the lower right-hand corner.



Here are some links to find examples created by former EDUC 584 students. They created these stories to read to their students. In other cases, students worked with the teachers to create the stories, doing this as a collaborative project, with students selecting the illustrations and dictating or typing the text for each page in the story.

Anna created several posts about her use of Storybird with her kindergarteners:

• My Little Darlings Make Me Smile (student examples)
• Done and Presented (her example, final draft)
• Created to Teach (her example, first draft)

Mari Beth created this one to use with her preschoolers

• Bingo, I Think I Got It

Bryan created this one to use with his second graders.

• Digital Story

Now that you've seen some examples, how do you envision using a tool like Storybird with students? 

Students of All Ages Can Create Public Service Announcements (PSA's)

Here is a PSA that students made regarding stopping bullying. It is a realistic example of what students can do when teachers offer them the opportunity to make PSA's. If you don't want to show your students' faces in a video, there are all kinds of ways for them to make PSA's. Although this example shows the students' faces, it is just one example of a PSA. Click on the image below to access the video from Animoto. Below the image of the video are links to posts that Bill Ferriter wrote about the project and the lesson plan he used for the student activity.

Blog Post about the Anti-Bullying PSA
Lesson Plan

Would you consider having your students make PSA's? If so, what topics might they address? What tool would you consider for them to make the PSA, keeping in mind the tool does not have to be technology one?

Create Animated Videos with GoAnimate

Here is a short video I made with GoAnimate. I am using the free version. I used only the settings, characters, speech bubbles, and music options to make this one, but lots of options are available in the free version. View in full screen to see the speech bubbles more easily.


So What's You Doing? by Judy A on GoAnimate

Reading on an iPod Found to Help Those with Dyslexia and More on Struggling Readers

As educators, we're always looking for ways to help our students. Some of us work with students who have trouble reading due to dyslexia, and some of us know friends and family members with this reading condition. I came across this study that I thought was worth sharing. Although the subjects in the study were high school students in Massachusetts, it would be interesting to find out if iPods help both younger students and even adults who suffer from reading issues related to their dyslexia. You can read the study at this site. You can also download the article or print it, if you prefer. Click on the article's title to access the article online.

What is some research you know of or observations you have made as an educator to help those who are struggling readers? Did you find the article helpful?

If you work with students with Down Syndrome, you might want to check the blog of Kathleen Whitbread, a special education professor at the Univeristy of Saint Joseph, CT. You can access her blog here, and let us know what you think of the information she provides.

On a more informal scale, I found this article that challenges the way many teachers conduct read-alouds in their classroom. The article offers two alternatives: Echo Reading and Choral Reading. You can find the article by clicking on the headline below.

As a teacher, do you agree with the methods suggested? Do you agree that the more conventional methods of read-alouds are not effective? As a student and former high school teachers who worked with struggling readers, I recall the method outlined as the conventional read-aloud method. I envisioned students figuring out ahead what they would be called upon to read and watching them skim to their sections and not paying attention to other readers. What about you?

Meet the Authors in a Google Hangout

Last year, I played around with a neat Web 2.0 tool called Smore that allows you to quickly create flyers. I decided to visit the site recently to make a flyer to announce an upcoming event.

When you go to the site, it is convenient to have pictures you want to use ready to go. Look through the templates, font choices, and backgrounds. Here is one example to give you an idea of what a flyer embedded in a blot post looks like. Use the scroll bar to see the flyer fully.




Head on over to the Smore site to learn more, and discover how you can send your flyers via email, post them on Facebook or Google +, embed them in a blog or website, or share them in other ways.

Author Blogs: Visit Kate Messner's Blog to Learn More

Kate Messner, children's book author, has an excellent blog, and included on it as a Page to find other authors' blogs. 

Here's a quick screen capture of the authors' blogs she offers, with links to them, but you need to visit her page to use the links virtually to get to the blogs.

While, you're on her site, look around. She offers a variety of information for young readers and encourages children to read and write. Here's a screen capture of the pages on her blog showing she has pages for Books, Blog, Kids, Writers, Speaking, Appearances, and About Me. If you set up a classroom blog, you might want to create a page to help your own students find authors' blogs online.

Perhaps seeing that authors have blogs will encourage your students to want to have a full class blog or to create their own individual blog, or join a class blog organized with a platform like KidBlog.

In addition to Kate's blog, she also can be found in these places:

Twitter

Facebook

Google Docs for Learning: Way More than Meets the Eye

Susan Oxenovd created this great Glogster of multiple ways to use Google Docs. Click any object for details.



Let us know if you find this Glogster useful for finding new ways to use Google Docs.