#22 and #23 Ebooks and Downloadable media

We are currently exploring the introduction of ebooks (downloadable to existing hardware or onto dedicated readers) to our Library collection. At this point there are more questions than answers.  The range of Australian titles for primary aged children is limited at this point in time, and this is one area for consideration.  The links, blogs and rss feeds that I have found throughout the course have given us a wider range of resources to increase our knowledge base than we had thought possible!

#20 Podcasts

A search of the links from the home page found me a podcast of Bassoon lessons (heaps of potential for aspiring musicians living 'way out west'), inspiration from the desk of Mrs Kendrick, Music teachers 911 and Kids 4 Kids podcast.  This one has real potential for school - students making a podcast of their own stories, or reading well known stories, as models for other students, as a "buddy" task for Year 7s or Year 6s, or simply to create a wider audience for their writing.  Definitely a possibility.

#19 Rollyo

Well Rollyo has too many connections and didn't connect.  This is the first link from the course that hasn't worked so that's a positive for the course.  I wonder what will happen tomorrow.  A TL colleague recommended Rollyo  a few months back - hope I haven't missed my chance!

#17 Delicious

I've been using Delicious for almost a year.  A TL colleague mentioned it and I thought it would be a great way of overcoming the "I thought I bookmarked a site for that...." frustration that happens between the computer at school and at home.  It was only very recently that I made use of the "social" aspect of Delicious.  I had been searching (for way too long) to locate and select a range of websites that would support Stage 2's investigation of British Colonisation.  Clicking on the "wrong" link, I found myself searching everyone's tags.  One "wrong" click and I had exactly what I needed!  I love Delicious!

#18 Wikis

Creating a wiki with a class is the best way of helping them to discover that Wikipedia is not necessarily the most reliable source of information for their own research tasks.  The online learning platform provided by our school system is a safe way for our students (and their parents) to participate in a wiki.

#21 Youtube & Teachertube

Kids today respond particularly well to visual stimulus. Although Youtube must be researched carefully before showing a clip to a class (and sometimes the ads when you put it up there for the class are quite different to the harmless ones you saw when evaluating the clip!) I've found the video clips a great way to hook students into a concept. Year 5 grammar last year loved Conjunction Junction  and School House Rock Interjections .
Clips of Yothu Yindi's "Djapana" and Jimmy Barnes "Working Class Man" (the original, not the one from the Oxford Pub) helped with Stage 3's understanding of the concepts when we were doing Contemporary Australian Music last term.

#15 AND #16

And, now perhaps the answer to the time question.........

#12 - Flickr second - Beach spade

Beach spade, a photo by doug88888 on Flickr.

love the colours

#13 and #14 - Social networking sites

I have found Facebook a useful tool to keep up with the happenings in our extended family - nieces, nephews, children, grandchildren, and with siblings overseas. My Space may be useful for exploring contemporary music. I have yet to find an educational use for either, but if I stay with it long enough, I'm sure I'll find a blog that will provide one.
Linkedin gives the option to join groups, based on interest & profession.
Twitter is no longer a mystery - I can follow well known academics in the field, professional journals and who know what else?
BUT it all takes time. Choosing the most valuable (in terms of useable ideas, information) takes more time. The huge volume of "stuff" out there

#12 - Flicker - first -leewynw's photostream

leewynw's photostream on Flickr.

Some family photos from the 60s

#11 Library Thing

Cataloguing my own books has never been very high on the agenda. However, it could be useful for my husband to keep track of the books he has loaned to friends!.
I plan to explore Library Thing's potential for reviews on the Library website. Stay tuned!

#10 Image Generators

Many of these image generators couldn't be used at school - the advertising & links to singles sites would ensure our web filter would refuse access!  I like the wide range of options available on Cool Text.com -  when students are building their personal home pages, they could spend hours and hours just playing.





Image by Cool Text: Free Logos and Buttons - Create An Image Just Like This

http://img821.imageshack.us/i/setupnh.jpg/ - Would be worth trying to create signs for promotions.  www.fansigngenerator.com - another one with potential (although I'd have to check at school to see if it's accessible)

And there aren't enough hours in a day to play with the options on http://www.imagegenerator.org/.
 

#9 Virtual Worlds

Problem solving, role playing, collaborative learning opportunities are some possible benefits gained through interaction/ participation in virtual worlds.   I will have to do some more thinking and exploring to find the role for virtual worlds in our curriculum.  The mention of "high speed internet access" raises the issue of equity of access.

#8 iGoogle

Still MORE!  With so many options for a home page, it could quickly become the only place one goes, rather than the page which is the launching pad.

#7 Google Books

SOOOO many books, so little time to read them.  Google Books could be a useful tool for finding particular titles.  It gives access to e-versions of classics, and provides the opportunity to locate overseas publications.  My default is to look for children's literature, so the results were limited - however, I did spend quite a time catching up with Calvin and Hobbes!

#6 Google Maps

I'm determined not to be seduced by the new toys, but to try to focus on the value adding to teaching and learning that the "toys" enable.  The Stage 2 Local Area unit could be enhanced by a personalized Google Map - identifying the details of points of interest, providing a virtual tour guide (if the children had hand-held devices to take on the walk with them).   Alternatively, following the traditional walk around the historic sites of the local area, labeling a Google Map would be an interesting way of demonstrating new knowledge & understandings.  The range of digital literacies required is a challenge, if you are deconstructing the task and identifying specific skills the children will need to undertake the activity.

Success

Got it this time.  It's the digital literacy of the blog itself that causes problems.  Once again, we need to be conscious of explicitly teaching the skills of reading the blog tools.

Trying again

A presentation

More Google docs

and a Presentation

Can I link a Google doc to the blog?

Link to Google docs

First Post

Joining this course seemed like the perfect way to stop "tinkering" with Web 2.0 tools and to start really learning how to use them to harness learning opportunities - for the students & me!

The best beach on the east coast.