Friday, November 27, 2009
The site is set up like a wiki, and, in fact, Sr. Larry Sanger, one of the co-founders of Wikipedia, initiated the concept. The site offers pages for teachers, students, and parents, and allows for contributing videos and commenting upon videos viewed. As a new site, its evolution and use will be interesting to follow. I just sampled several of the videos. You'll find below the category, title, URL, and site's recap of the video. Check out the site, and let us know what you think, keeping in mind the site launched just a few weeks ago.
“This video was made for the Connecticut College kids judge neuroscience fair. It tells the harrowing story of Phineas Gage and the amazing discoveries gained from his brain injury.”
Category: Science/Earth Science
“Why Study Earth Science”
"A geoscientist stresses the importance of learning earth science. He also explains the changes on our planet through geological time. The scientist also stresses the importance of learning earth science. It is a six minute video and contains nice photographs and good narration. "
“The Geography Tutor? What is Geography?”
"A Geography Tutor Video. Video answers the questions: What do geographers mean when they talk about culture? Culture can be defined as a way of life that distinguishes a people from another group. Cultural traits can be explained in religion, language, system of government, customs, and beliefs. Also discusses; culture region - which is an area occupied by people who share one or more cultural trails, culture hearth - which is a place where important ideas began and from which they spread to other areas. Video is of good quality and appropriate for students in elementary school and middle school." Ages 7 – 13
“Basic Math Lesson: Fractional Expressions
"Concepts covered: Decimal Fraction, Percentage, and Ratio. "Ages 10-18
“Rolling R’s Days of the Week”
"Instructor Larry Keim explains the days of the week in Spanish. Find out how to say the days of the week and how to talk about the different days of the week using some simple grammar and phrases."
Languages/Spanish/Native Conversation in Spanish
“Spanish Activities and Transportation”
"Watch as the instructor tells about her childhood and the different activities that she liked to do, and different modes of travel and transportation. This lesson can be used for intermediate to advanced learners as a tool for listening comprehension."
Learn about the Site: http://www.watchknow.org/About.aspx; check the WatchKnow.org Press Release
Friday, November 20, 2009
Teacher Magazine on Facebook
Teacher Magazine on Twitter
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Sunday, November 15, 2009
Saturday, November 14, 2009
Photos Story Tutorial # 2
Photo Story Tutorial # 3
Final version of Yosemite Park Photo Story based on the 3 tutorials
Photo Story of the author's bio (includes narration)
Photo Story 3 tutorial created with children engaged in an art project
To see a tutorial on how to add narration, view this tutorial, the first half of which reviews how to customize motion and the second half of which explains the ease with which narration is added: Narrate Your Pictures and Customize Motion
For those of you interested in using Photo Story to string together pictures already found on the Internet, perhaps by using the "Image" search feature in Google, this tutorial will give tips on creating a Photo Story with found images on the Internet. This video is very helpful for working with students who will find pictures on the Internet and want to know how to save them and what the minimum resolution (500 pixels) should be for the pictures not to look grainy (fuzzy) in the final movie. Because this video is so helpful for learning how to use Photo Story in the context of an actual movie that students might create for a class project, I have also embedded the YouTube. The topic for the movie was the culture of China. If you only have 8 minutes to learn about Photo Story 3, I suggest you start with this tutorial, viewing it from my blog or the YouTube link provided. In this way, you learn about Photo Story as well as see a finished product all within 8 minutes.
I know there a bit to absorb in the blog, but want to emphasize how much can be done with simple free tools like Photo Story 3. You will find a host of movies made with Photo Story at YouTube, TeacherTube, and other online video hosting sites. If you find ones worth sharing, please post their URL's. Happy hunting, and enjoy!
Friday, November 13, 2009
A mix of face-to-face and virtual learning
Online courses in which students apply their learning to solve real-world problems
Increased teacher engagement and seamless connections with online tools
New leadership roles for teachers including collaborating with policymakers
Increased emphasis on individualization based on the differentiated instruction model
If interested, read Berry’s full report: "The Teachers of 2030: Creating a Student-Centered Profession for the 21st Century.” As you think ahead, what's your vision of public school education in 2030?
Image from: www.manchesterumc.info/may9.html
Monday, November 9, 2009
Images are from Baron's post at the The Noun Game
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Slideshare, a site for storing PowerPoint presentations and other slide displays, gets a top billing, and Nings are receiving increasing attention as professional development tools. Twitter moved to first place from 11th in 2008. PowerPoint went from 8th place in 2008 to 12th in 2009, a sign that emerging Web 2.0 tools are overtaking Microsoft Office products. Slideshare is in 7th place this year, above PowerPoint by 4 spots. YouTube in 4th place this year was in 18th in 2008, a significant climb. Delicious, a social bookmarking site, slipped to second place this year from 1st last year as Twitter moved to the top. Let us know which of the multitude of sites you incorporate in your teaching or plan to consider for the future.
We will devote one night in class to Blogger/Blogspot, in 14th place; it's one of the easiest blogging tools to learn. The top 100 for 2008 is also available to view on SlideShare, and the 2009 list should be in SlideShare soon once the voting closes. In fact, you have until Nov. 15, 2009 to cast your vote for this year's winners.
Remember to bookmark Top 100 Tools for Learning for reference. There's lots to explore. I will soon update my list of "Education Websites" on this blog's second sidebar, and for class, you need to create your own annotated lists of valuable sites for teachers and students. The Top 100 Tools and the second sidebar on this blog might help you find some sites you want to include.
Image from the Centre for Learning and Performance Technologies
Monday, November 2, 2009
Photo of Susan Engel from her faculty page at Williams College.
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- Photo Story 3 In Less than 10 Minutes
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