21st Century Skills Technology Tip #6

Published on May 15, 2009 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , .

21st Century Skills

Technology Tip #6

Social Bookmarking

Social bookmarking is an Internet based method for storing all the URL’s for your favorite web sites. This also allows you to organize your sites by using tags, or keywords regarding the content of the site. There are a number of free sites that will allow you to store your favorite websites.

Some example sites:

Delicious

Edutagger

Simpy

Blogmarks

Digg

Resources for Social Bookmarking in the Classroom:

Social Bookmarking in the Classroom

Using Social Bookmarking in the Classroom

Social Network Discussions

Social bookmarking is an excellent way to keep the web sites that you use in your classroom organized and close at hand.

21st Century Skills Technology Tip #5

Published on May 8, 2009 in Uncategorized. 2 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , .

21st Century Skills Technology Tip #5

Online Image Manipulation/Editing

Oil Painting Special Effect

Oil Painting Effect

In the past, editing digital images used to require sophisticated software.  Today there are many online tools available that are free and easy to use. The picture above was edited through the web site Pixer. This site uploads your picture, allows you edit it, and then saves it back to your computer. It does not require  you  to register which is a plus. This site is easy to use but it is limited in editing options available.

Some other online image manipulation sites are:

Picnik

Online Photo Tool

SnipShot

Picture2Life

Photoshop Express

**Those are sites that have been recommended, but I have not checked to see if they require registration or if there are fees associated with them.

Image manipulation is fun for students and can be tied in with Internet Safety and other classroom activities. Students can use these online tools to create avatars from their own images that can be uploaded. They can use the avatars on blog sites, and other interactive web sites, to protect their identity.

These sites can be used for other classroom activities as well. Students can edit images that they want to use in presentations or images that they may want to post on the classroom blog site.

Resources:

Art Education by Harold Olejarz

Instructional Technology/Technology Information Literacy

My PortaPortal

Things to be aware of:

1. Make sure you follow district policy regarding posting student pictures and personal information on the web and other forms of media.

2. Be sure to check the terms of service agreement with the web site. Does the site retain your pictures in any way?

If you have any questions, feel free to contact me.

21st Century Skills Technology Tip #4

Published on April 29, 2009 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , .

21st Century Skills Technology Tip #4

Using Digital Picture Storage Sites & Creating Photoshows

There are many online sites that offer free digital image hosting. Some of the more popular sites include Flickr, photobucket, ImageShack, Picasa, and Shutterfly. Most of these sites will give you a certain amount of storage space free with the option to upgrade for a fee.

Not only do these sites let you store your digital pictures, they also allow you to share them in various ways. Depending on the options offered by the site, you can email your digital pictures to friends and create photoshows. Again, depending on the options offered by the site, your photoshow can be emailed, shared by URL, or embedded into a blog site. Photoshows created using Picasa can be embedded into your Google Apps. websites created with your Google Apps. accounts.

Below is a short photoshow I created using Flickr.

Using digital picture storage sites and creating photoshows is very easy. You, and your students, will love sharing your classroom activities with others with these free online tools.

Things to be aware of:

1. Make sure you follow district policy regarding posting student pictures and personal information on the web and other forms of media.

2. Be sure to check the terms of service agreement with the picture storage site. Who maintains ownership of the pictures? Once you upload your pictures, are they still yours? The terms of agreement will differ depending on the site that you use.

3. Be sure to set the privacy settings that the picture storage site offers, again these differ per site.

21st Century Technology Tip #3

Published on April 22, 2009 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , .

21st Century Skill Technology Tip #3

Avatars

What is an avatar? An avatar is a digital image; it can be a real picture or animated image, which is manipulated in some way. An individual who participates in blogging, online gaming, or other online activities can use this manipulated image to represent themselves to help protect their true identity.

Here are two examples of avatars that I created using free online tools.

My DoppleMe

When using a free online tool to create an avatar, you need to be careful and screen the site before you use it with your students. There are some inappropriate sites out there that offer free services. Below are a list of sites that should be safe for using with your students. You may search for sites on your own, but remember to carefully preview them first before you use them in the classroom with students.

Doppel Me

Portrait Maker

Blabberize

Simpsonize Me – (Have not tried this one.)

The Mini-Mizer – (Kid Safe version.)

Portrait Avatar Maker

If you and your students participate in a classroom blog, an avatar can help protect student identity and your students will have fun creating their own avatar and showing off their artistic skills.

If you would like more information or help learning how to create an avatar, feel free to contact me.

21st Century Skills Technology Tip #2

Published on April 8, 2009 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments Tags: , , .


21st Century Skill Technology Tip #2

Blogging

Blogging is something that some of you are already using in your classroom. For others, maybe blogging is something that you would like to try. No matter what the case may be, blogging is a powerful tool for teachers to use in their classroom. Blogs can be used as a means of communication and also as a way to showcase what is happening in the classroom.

Some things to keep in mind when planning your blog are:

  • The blog software that you will be using
  • The goals of your blog
  • Your audience
  • Be consistent
  • Be visible
  • Be yourself

There are a number of online blog sites that are free to educators. Below is a list of a few sites that are free to educators:

edublogs

Classblogmeister

Blogger

TypePad

In addition, I am including a link to a very helpful resource, “50 Useful Blogging Tools for Teachers.”

Keep in mind that all blog software is different, some are easier than others. In addition, some blog sites offer more advanced options including the ability to assign student accounts. It is up to you to decide in advance how you want to use your blog and then to preview the different blog sites to see which one is the best fit.

Using blogs in the classroom includes a number of 21st Century skills. First, it is a form of interactive communication. This communication can be between teacher and parents, teacher and students, or all three. The blog can be a place to showcase student work in digital form and demonstrate mastery of digital technology tools.

If you have any questions about setting up a blog for your classroom, post a comment and I will respond. If you would like help setting up a blog, contact me and we can set up at time to meet.

Thanks,

Susan