Z is for Zamzar

Do you ever need to open a file that is in a format not recognized by your computer?  Do you ever need to convert a file to a PDF file?  Zamzar allows you to convert up to five files at a time when using the free account.  You simply select the file, choose the format you wish to convert the file to,  enter your email address and agree to their terms!  Voila, within an hour the converted file should be in your mailbox.

I was wondering where the name came from - according to their website  "The name "Zamzar" is based on a character from the German author Franz Kafka's book "The Metamorphosis". In the novel Kafka describes the extraordinary story of a young man who is transformed whilst sleeping into a gigantic insect. The man's name - Gregor Samsa - was used as the basis for our company name because of its' powerful association with change & transformation."

Y is for You Tube

I am constantly amazed by the videos I find on You Tube and its sister Teacher Tube.  You can view YouTube videos on your computer, your phone, your TV, your site.   I'm dating myself but I remember when a filmstrip once every few months was a big deal!  Students today are bombarded with an incredible number of images daily - helpful to remember when trying to capture their attention!   From the sublime to the ridiculous, it's a site to consider for inspiration and information however using it in a school setting can be somewhat problematic.  Some schools block access to the site and some of the suggested videos and comments can be inappropriate for school.

X is for XtraNormal

One of my favorite sites.  I've created a few animations now and they really do grab the student's attention. I found the program to be fairly intuitive and really enjoy the process.  I am hoping to create some with the sixth grade students.  The only glitch I've found so far is that some pronunciations aren't quite right but it is not a huge issue.  My first XtraNormal is on the top left side of this page and my second is on the Dennett Elementary School Geography Project.

I found a discussion on using Twitter in Education using XtraNormal.  Wow, we've got web 2.0 apps promoting web 2.0 apps.  Is Hal far behind?

W is for Wizard of Apps

Joyce Valenza is one of the powerhouses of the library world.  Somehow she manages to teach, blog, present, wiki, create pathfinders, innovate and probably makes a mean batch of brownies also.  When I saw that she was one of the presenters at the online conference, I had to watch her.  I ended up with a 5 page handwritten (how non 21st century of me) list of websites and apps.   I was pleased to see how many of them we had covered in class.  Now, I'm rethinking the project on demonstrating our digital learning.  I'm not sure if I'll change it but I want to try out some of the new tools to see if they would be a different way to approach the project.  

If you watch her presentation, be prepared for the possibility of being a little overwhelmed - did I mention I had five pages of links?  I almost wish she had broken it down into shorter videos - maybe one on online safety and ethics, one on research, one on creativity & innovation and one on collaboration.  I would have liked to have seen more examples for each website, they sounded so intriguing.  But, I can put on my own ruby slippers and follow the yellow brick road of links that wait for me.  I'm off to see the Wizard!

V is for Voki

As part of a unit on poetry, students in Fourth Grade chose a theme and selected three poems that illustrated this theme.  Next, they practiced the poetry and then performed in front of a peer for some suggestions on ways to improve their delivery.  Finally, they chose a Voki to narrate their poetry.  They loved the project and became proficient not only with the technology but with ways to communicate effectively and respectfully with their peers.  Three C's in action!  Creativity, communication and collaboration.  

U is for URL

Imagine your street address is 40 South Alexandria Drive,  Swampscott MA  01907 and how long it would take to write or type it.  Now imagine that the Post Office in an unexpected burst of generosity told you that you could use 40SAl instead as your address and your mail would still get to you and people could still find your house.   That's a little bit of the theory behind Tiny URLs.

I have seen Tiny URLs and not until this class had I tried them.  How easy and quick and what a great idea to use with students!  Not only are they shorter (less chance of error) but when you create one, it is automatically copied to the clipboard.

http://dennettgeographyproject.wikispaces.com/ became http://tiny.cc/7TUiM in the push of a button.
46 characters down to 20

Try it at www.tiny.cc!

T is for Time

Flash-Widgets
Flash-Widgets
If the Mayans were correct and we only have a limited number of days until the end of the world, we better make sure we're using our time wisely.  (Yes, I know that many believe it just means a new cycle is starting but really how dramatic is that?)  Time has been both a friend and enemy during this class and I'm sure as I go forward.  I need to remember to continue to focus on small slices of the watermelon and to reflect on how far I've come.

S is for Steal this Preso

"Steal this Preso" is an entertaining look at copyright issues in web 2.0. Matthew Needleman (who first greets us dressed as a pirate) talks about when it is ok to use copyrighted materials with the least amount of restrictions (inside the four walls of the classroom with students only, strictly for an educational use) and when more restrictions apply (almost any other time). His point that " just because it's free to you, doesn't mean it's free to use" is important. Copying links is so easy that is also easy to forget that we may just be stealing them!

He also discusses the myths of using copyrighted materials and the uses that are "ok". And, he gives some links to sites that can freely be used on his blog www.creatinglifelonglearners.com. Perhaps the most important message contained in this presentation was the need to teach students about intellectual property rights. As important as it is to teach them how to use technology, it is just as -or perhaps more - important to teach them about why getting permission is important. Aaaargh, me hearties - perhaps we should schedule a day to teach about ethics on the Internet every year near the beginning of school on September 19th - Talk Like A Pirate Day.

R is for Rubrics

Kathy Schrock has an amazing collection of rubric links on her web page.  She covers almost every imaginable subject area.  Click on the image below to visit her site.  A word of caution, some links are dead but all in all a great resource!  An

Q is for Quiz

So, how much do you think you know about Web 2.0?
Take this quiz and find out...

Do you think you know web 2.0? » Create Quizzes

P is for Prezi

My first Prezi. Another great tool for presenting and organizing information.

O is for Open Participatory Learning Ecosystems

Wow, that's a mouthful - but - really for me this concept is the heart of the greatest value of the Internet.  Open Participatory Learning Ecosystems (herein referred to as OPLE) is a combination of Open Educational Resources (such as the MIT course material available free  to anyone), eScience and eHumanities links and Web 2.0 & beyond.  While in school, we have access to many resources (and the above resources should be used and only make educational opportunities even richer) but when we leave a formalized educational experience, opportunities to learn often need to be sought out.  The beauty of OPLE is that these resources can be found in our homes and our physical distance from a school is no longer a factor.   Because of the value of this access, the digital divide becomes even more an area of concern.  How do we ensure that everyone can easily use these resources?   From our country to across the ocean, people are working to achieve this necessary goal -

N is for Ning

A Ning is similar to a blog but is more of a social community. One a network is created, people can move into it and post comments, pictures, announcements, videos, meet others with similar interests and more. At the beginning of our class, I posted the comment "I am really beginning to like Nings but am not sure how I will be using it. Does anyone have ideas about implementing this in your schools? I think that we can request that the advertising be removed which takes one of my concerns away. Ideas?" and got the most responses to anything I've posted so far. 

I like the social aspect of a Ning and one of my goals is to explore the different Nings that are available starting with The Future of Education:

M is for Media Literacy

L is for Learn Central

A new - another - Social Networking site but one with a difference. You've got to take a second look at a site that states its' rallying cry is No Educator Left Behind! According to the site, "When you join Learn Central, you get your own free virtual meeting room with two-way VoIP, multipoint video, interactive whiteboard, application sharing, and more. Elluminate vRoomTM enables you to connect with up to two other people or locations, such as classrooms, to communicate, collaborate, and educate worldwide. "

The site is sponsored by Elluminate and they unabashedly admit that they hope the use of this free technology will translate into greater understanding of the importance of their tools and thus purchase them for your school or institution. From their website, here's verbatim what they say you can do:

• Connect with your peers worldwide 
• Hold online meetings in your free Elluminate vRoomTM 
• Search network of educators indexed by interests 
• Share ideas, discuss issues, solve problems 
• Develop and share standards-based curriculum 
• Access a library of peer-rated resources 
• Discover relevant content for your classroom 
• Improve skills and increase effectiveness 
• Create and maintain a portfolio of learning content 
• Join and create discussion groups and forums 
• Collaborate on projects and best practices 
• Mentor and be mentored 
• Increase visibility of an academic institution 
• Conduct professional development training 
• Attend events with thought leaders in the education community

K is for Keynote

Which came first?  The chicken or the egg?  After listening to the keynote speech on Going Global, I wondered whether becoming a "third culture kid" is the result of living in different cultures so that "where you are from is hard to answer" or is it a mindset that some people have, even if they've never left their hometown.  Certainly, I've known narrow minded people who have traveled the world and expect it to be the same as the U.S.   Also, I've met people who are open minded and  questioning without leaving home.  I tend to believe that our students can be  just as tolerant, appreciative and empathetic as those in International Schools without ever leaving our country.  It is one of our jobs as teachers to expose students to other cultures and to bring the world into our classrooms if we are to truly prepare them for the future.

We now longer have the luxury of believing that we can be an island onto ourselves.  Our economy is so intertwined with the economies of other cultures that we need to know how to collaborate creatively, to adapt and to look at the world globally.  Again, we have the chicken and the egg question.  Did technology create a global economy or is it a response to the creation of this economy.  Either way, we must be proficient users and teachers of technology if we wish our students to be successful.  

So, I am going to try to be better at exposing my students to the world.  One way I will start is to use Kim Cofino's advice and work toward creating my PLN with different countries.  Step one - "learn by lurking."  Wish me luck!

J is for Jing

I is for ISTE

How do we know if  we've arrived if we don't have a clear view of our destination?  Standards are like a GPS system for our practices.  They lead us to what we need to facilitate, develop, model, promote and engage.  Tough to achieve but critical.  

H is for How?

I've been thinking about all the tools we've learned about in this class and one of the words that keeps popping up for me is how?  How do we learn the ways the different tools work?  How do we find the time to use the tools?  How do we convince other teachers to use these tools?  How do we keep up with the all the information that is continuously changing, growing and evolving?  How do these sites work - well at least the answer to this question has been answered!

G is for Google

Did you know the original name for Google was BackRub?  That little bit of information might just make you the winner of the next Trivial Pursuit game you play.  According to their Corporate Information page, the two founders in 1997 decided that the BackRub had to go.  "After some brainstorming, they go with Google -- a play on the word "googol," a mathematical term for the number represented by the numeral 1 followed by 100 zeros. The use of the term reflects their mission to organize a seemingly infinite amount of information on the web."  Exploring everything that Google has to offer is a course in itself !

Flickr had 5,934 uploads in the last minute!  That's minute not hour or day or week!   What can you do on Flickr?  Upload photos; edit them; organize them into sets or collections; share them; add them to a map that shows where you shot them; purchase products using these photos and share them with others.  As a teacher, I can find photos and save them to a folder so young students aren't out on the web searching for photos for projects.

If you have the ability to set up safe searches, there are some great ways to use Flickr in the classroom.  Use the #haiku tag to demonstrate ways to write haikus and then give students photos and have them write their own.  Or, use the app http://www.pimpampum.net/bookr/? that allows you to search for a topic and create an online book.

Oh yes, with Flickr, a picture is definitely worth a thousand words.  

E is for Elluminate

The Elluminate session was illuminating.  I was curious to see how this online platform would work with our class.  It was intriguing for me to think about the ways content can be delivered to a diverse group of people in different locations.  I am impressed by the ability to connect and at the same time am frustrated by the lack of synchronicity during conversations.  I have yet to participate in an online "discussion" that doesn't leave me slightly befuddled - wanting to comment but finding a new thread of conversation popping up before I can type and finding myself answering a different question!  This technology is definitely a way to connect with classrooms around the world.   

D is for Dictionary

D is for dictionary (ostensibly)

Erin McKean is a lexicographer (she's better and funnier at explaining her job than I am) who gave the following talk at TED about dictionaries.  What I found most effective (other than her humor) was her use of PowerPoint slides using visuals only.  What a powerful technique!

 Using PowerPoint effectively is definitely a goal of mine!