Technology Meets Teacher

Ok so how many times have you been busy with your lesson planning and hit a stump of you could do to jazz up the lesson?  You just need a website or maybe you are looking for a game for your centers to support a standard.  Well, if this sounds like you, Common Core Explorer will change the way you search for products to support teaching concepts aligned to Common Core State Standards.

Graphite's Common Core Explorer offers intuitive filters that make it easy for you to navigate the standards- and surface-relevant edtech products, all rated and reviewed for learning potential.

Start by clicking on Language Arts and a grade level, and the relevant strands appear. Click on a strand to display the anchor strands and the standards themselves.

If you pick Mathematics and a grade level, the relevant domains appear. Click on a domain to display the clusters and the math standards.

Once you’ve zeroed in on the standard you want to reinforce, toggle the arrow to display all the apps, games, and websites reviewed on Graphite that support the teaching of that standard. You’ll be able to browse the ratings, prices, platforms, and other pertinent information about the products right from the list. Click through to read the in-depth reviews.  I think you will really like this site 

Voicethread is a Web-based digital-storytelling application that allows users to share their stories through audio, images, videos or text.  It also allows visitors to make comments on their stories in five different ways:  1) voice with a microphone, 2) or voice with telephone), 3) text, 4) audio file, or 5) video with a webcam. The stories can be shared with anyone in the world or they can be kept private for selected individuals. The collaboration aspect of using Voicethread is unbelievable.  I have had complete strangers make comments on my own creations in Voicethread.  However, there is the option to not share if you would rather have privacy.  Like many Web 2.0 applications, you can get a free basic account with some limitations.  But free has worked for me.  I have created quite a few little projects just fine with the free account.  But if you really like it and want more features for a fee, there are accounts available for purchase such as the single educator license.  There have been some changes at the site since I last logged in.  I understand individuals can get their own account under the business side of Voicethread.

I think VoiceThread is a great classroom tool and has a great potential in education.  It has a user-friendly interface.  Creating and sharing a video thread is a simple process and all you need is a microphone or Webcam.  Teachers and students can upload their PowerPoint slides (saved as JPEGs) and expand on the info with audio snippets.  Teachers can even set up an account for individual classes that allow students access to the account for group projects.  Also, VoiceThread presentations can be embedded in blogs and Web sites. 

    http://voicethread.com/ is the link to the site. I truly cannot give it justice in words.  It is one of those sites that you need to dig in and play with the features.  If you looking for a way to dazzle up your teaching presentations or for a more interactive school project for your students, then you need to check it out.

   A couple of years ago I learned about Big Huge Labs.   This web site is awesome.  I can’t begin to even tell you half of the products you and your students can create from this site.  The tools include

Badge Maker - make an ID card, press pass, or name tag

Motivator - make motivational posters

Pop Art Poster - create a 9 panel false color poster from an image

Magazine Cover - create your own cover with headlines for the magazine (see example below)

Movie Poster - choose a photo, title and credits

Hockneyizer - create a unique photo collage

Calendar - create monthly calendars from photos

Trading Card - use photos and add your own text and symbols

Captioner - add your own comic book style captions to an image

Billboard - add a photo and a message to a billboard

Ok,  I have heard of Dropbox, but never used it. But I think it is just the product I may need to organize myself.  Dropbox is like magic.  It is a tool that helps you store and access files anywhere you are.  Have you ever  forgotten your flash drive with your assignment.?  Or maybe you have been out of town and you need to access your business presentation from home or a hotel.  Maybe you are like me and are always on the go and unable to  keep all the important pictures, videos, documents and other materials in one place. , Dropbox will save you time and make your life easier.

 When you connect to the service you are able to  get to your files from any place in the world. You are able to instantly share your files with your  peers or clients. You can get rid of your CDs and flashdrives.  Connect all your devices to Dropbox and you have your files in storage.

The way it works is that a special folder is created in Dropbox for all your devices.  When you need to save a file, you simply drag it into the folder and it will quickly appear in the same folders on all the other devices you own.  The program works with laptops, PCs, cell phones, and iPads.  Dropbox also works with all the platforms: Mac OS, Microsoft Windows,  Android OS, iOS, Linux,  and, BlackBerry.

At this date, , the Dropbox service offers its users both free and paid accounts.  The difference is in the storage.  Once registered, free-account users get 2 GB, which can be increased up to 10 GB by referring others to the service. The referee gets 250 additional MB for each referred user (if they register).  Paid accounts run between ten to twenty dollars a month depending on how many GBs you want

Looking to build a good website?  Weebly is the place to go.  Weebly is an easy to Use website builder.  It allows you to add anything needed: video, docs, HTML Code, and more.  Weebly also has an education site that allows 40 free student accounts with you wanted to use it with a project with your students.

Do you ever wish you could keep up with all those neat sites you find on the web?   You need a bookmarking tool.  There are several available, but Diigo is very popular among educators. The site is free.  Besides bookmarking, the user can use it while researching because of the features such as highlighting and taking notes.  Tyler Manolovitz a Digital Resources Coordinator for  Sam Houston State University does a good job explaining Diigo at the following link.

http://www.rcgov.org/pdfs/Library/Diigo_Description.pdf

Go to the site and start your account today.   https://www.diigo.com/