"Civilization is in a race between education and catastrophe. Let us learn the truth and spread it as far and wide as our circumstances allow. For the truth is the greatest weapon we have." – H.G. Wells
Creating this video was an awesome opportunity to tell a story about my hometown that carries significance not only in Kansas History, but U.S. History as well. Being in Medicine Lodge for the summer made this task much easier, as I was able to get many photos myself and record video at the site of the pageant as well as other places of interest. With plenty of local knowledge instilled in the people of Medicine Lodge from a young age, the real process of creating this video was choosing what to include and how to best represent it. I used iMovie for everything, except the written slides for which I used Vittle. It was a lot of fun retelling a story I’ve grown up learning about, but isn’t as widely known as I think it should be. I felt like I was passing along a piece of history (which is right up my alley) while making this movie. I hope this movie convinces you to come and experience the Peace Treaty Pageant celebration, but if not, at least I have done my part in sharing a little piece of Kansas with you.
The Using Apps in the Classroom collection on iTunes U is a series of courses available for educational purposes. They are for teachers to gain ideas about handy apps that can be used to broaden the horizons of student learning. The collection spans a variety of apps, making it useful for all educators. With 18 different courses to choose from, I couldn’t help but notice titles like Explain Everything Lesson Ideas, Hopscotch Lesson Ideas, and Aurasma Lesson Ideas.
To find the collection on your iPad:
1) Get the free iTunes U app
2) Under the Featured tab, scroll down to find the link that says For Educators
3) Scroll through page for collection titled “Using Apps in the Classroom”
The Skitch Lesson Ideas course book opens wide the door for teachers looking to incorporate the app into their daily curriculum. The book comes with a good introduction to the app, along with a video about how to use it. The app can be used for the education of students aged 5-18, with the targeted subjects (there are a variety of them) changing with the age of the student. Ideas for activities using the app are outlined for each subject/age group, along with examples and sample rubrics that teachers can use to assess the projects. Overall, the course book showed me that technology is great about teaching you how to use it with other technology! I loved the design of the book, and the organization makes it easy to find exactly what you’re looking for. The entire collection should be checked out by any tech-savvy teacher that frequently uses iPad apps for learning.
The Inspiring Lesson Ideas for Teachers collection on iTunes U is a series of courses available for educational purposes. They are for teachers to use as a template, resource, or to get ideas. The collection spans all grade levels and subjects, making it useful for all educators. With 30 different courses to choose from, I couldn’t help but notice titles like Organic PE: Basketball, The Graphic Novel, and It’s All Geography to Me.
To find the collection on your iPad:
1) Get the free iTunes U app
2) Under the Featured tab, scroll down to find the link that says For Educators
3) Search page for collection titled “Inspiring Lesson Ideas for Teachers”
The course I chose – The Civil Rights Act of 1964 – came loaded with suggestions, an outline, and assignments that are ready for students to use. Posts within the course are organized according to different sections of the outline; 1. Introducing the Law, 2. Building Understanding, and 3. Applying Your Learning. All of the posts provide mini-lectures, links and resources, and assignments for student comprehension. There is a notes section of the course that allows the user to log course notes, audio/video notes, and book notes to further learning. I was moved at the effort that went into compiling this resource for others to use. Inspiring as it was to see an entire lesson efficiently put together into a digital course book, it was even more refreshing to learn how to access this database and apply this kind of technology into my future classroom. A lesson like this could be used interactively with the teacher, or as a guide during a teacher’s extended absence – the uses are numerous. If you haven’t checked out these resources, it is a must!
This iBook completely opened my eyes to a world of education that I didn’t know existed. Isaac Pineda has a revolutionary vision about education, and the fact that he’s doing it in Mexico surprised me the most. I was unaware at the resources available to schools there, as it seemed more up-to-date than my high school. The book comes with a great introduction to what Mr. Pineda is doing with his project. In short, he puts learning into student hands by having them create an history textbook over the course of 8 weeks. The students take on job roles, and work together to complete a polished product. Student Authored Textbooks: A Student’s Perspective on History is excellently designed, and comes fully loaded with plenty of helpful and informational videos, review presentations and quizzes, along with graphics that complement the text. As a fellow social science teacher, I am definitely going to keep this in mind as a project for my students, as it worked so well for Isaac’s classes. This kind of project can be applied to any classroom as well, so I recommend strongly that all future educators read this!
After exploring my final blog, I can honestly say I was surprised at almost everything about Glenn Wiebe’s blog. His webpage’s layout was far more eye-popping than most of the others I’ve seen. I loved his scrolling-screen graphic that showed stories of interest at the top of the page. The variety of information on the page spans from history resources to technological and educational links/resources. He kept his personal information concise and well-organized, which I liked a lot. It’s nice to learn from someone who isn’t wrapped up in themselves, and Glenn’s blog taught me that advocating what you’re passionate about goes a lot farther than advocating for yourself.
I made this presentation with Adobe Slate, which can be downloaded for free on the iTunes app store. The app is a much sleeker, and more shareable presentation creator than others that have come before it (e.g. PowerPoint). The app can be used to tell any kind of story, and allows the import of nearly any kind of document. Choosing this app over the others came down to how simply the wide range of tools were organized and placed. The text tools are simple yet produce an aesthetic design, allowing for smooth transitions. Inserting media is very simple and welcoming from the get-go. I had a great experience with Slate, and see it as a great format for students to use when working on a presentation or visual project. The presentations read like a book, which I preferred over a presentation that uses voice. I would recommend this app to someone looking for logistic design, readily available customization, and eye-catching looks.
My screencast was made with the Vittle app, which comes in free and paid versions. The app is centered around video recording, with drawing, add-in, and select features that allow the user to turn an image or drawing into a step-by-step instructional creation. Voice can be added to the video, and it is easy to share your Vittle on various platforms. The big bonus to the app is the lack of cost. It’s also simplistically versatile. Drawbacks include limited customizability and template plainness, as it comes with the same template every time. However, this app could be used endlessly in a classroom to introduce content, make tutorials for students, or even flip the classroom. I would recommend it for any teacher looking for a free way to make screencasts for any and all education purposes.
In exploring Larry Ferlazzo’s blog, I found some great ideas and resources on teaching ELL, ESL, and EFL students. The blog was excellently organized, and I loved the specificity of it all. The center of the page contained posts about websites for teachers, flanked by information about Mr. Ferlazzo’s books. I was surprised at how efficiently he was able to pack information into the space on his webpage. There was great flow to the page and all the emphasis was in the right places. I was impressed by this blog and I think it’s a great model for any educator or future educator looking to start their own blog!
My experience using iMovie was a memorably smooth one. I had used the app before, but never before for making a trailer. The templates were all very easy to follow and fill out, and the only thing that took me a considerable amount of time was finding material to put into the time-slots. Editing the pictures was simple, and making everything line up time-wise was even easier, as the app did most of that for me. I enjoyed making my movie trailer, and learned a lot about the capabilities of the iMovie app! You can buy the app for $4.99, and I believe that it is worth the price.
After watching 3 episodes from Tech Edge about using iPads in the classroom, I would recommend the series of helpful videos to any teacher looking to gain some knowledge about the ways an iPad can be incorporated into the classroom. The first episode I watched was Episode 167, Making the iPad Safe for Children.
The episode covers basic ways to restrict the ability of children to make purchases on the iPad or to use specific apps. I didn’t realize that the iPad came with such customizable controls. For instance, the web browsing app of your choice can be restricted so that the security passcode must be entered before the app can be opened. You can also set a passcode for the iTunes store and its associated programs.
Next, I watched Episode 154, Sight Words and Spelling Apps.
The episode gave some some great tips on using three different spelling/sight word apps. My favorite of the three was Cimo Spelling (Sight Words) . The app gives children the ability to independently work on their spelling skills with different levels that categorize words with the same spelling difficulties. This app could be used in a variety of ways in the classroom, but specifically for recognizing and correctly spelling the names of key historical figures and places.
Episode 136, American Sign Language and Text-to-Speech Apps was the third episode that I viewed.
While watching this, I found out how conducive an iPad can be to effective sign language communication, on top of the aid it can provide to students with reading or sight difficulties. In the modern inclusive classroom, it is vital for teachers to give students with disabilities the same education that is provided to everyone else. One app that can aid with this is the Marlee Signs app. The app does a great job of showing clear pictures of different signs, while allowing the user to type in a word they would like to see signed for them. It is a great app for anyone that would like to learn American Sign Language, or anyone looking for communication help with those who do use sign language. Another useful app discussed in the episode was the iSpeech TTS app. This app allows the user to type or paste text into an entry box, which is then read by a voice on the app. The simplicity of the app makes it widely usable, and it is well made so that it can be used practically daily. An app like this allows students to hear words that they would otherwise struggle to understand while reading. They could also put their own writing into the box if they have issues communicating verbally. Overall, the app is a great tool for all educators.
