EDpuzzle -- Make Videos Fit Your Lessons

EDpuzzle is similar to Educanon and Zaption.  It allows you to add comments and questions to videos that you use for instruction.  You can also crop the videos, which I think is really awesome.  To demonstrate, I used a very short video of my two Westies, Bucco and Sadie, at the beach last Sunday.

One thing I really like about EDpuzzle is that your students can create their own video projects and save them to the class, although in our district we are, of course, limited by the blocking of YouTube.

EDpuzzle is also available on the iPad and iPhone.

Video Apps for Instruction

Using online videos for instruction can be a good way to disseminate information, but students are often not actively engaged while watching the videos.

Both Zaption and Educanon offer a way to keep students engaged while they watch short videos.  You can add questions and slides and even crop the videos.  Once students have completed the activities, you can view the results.

Zaption seems to be easier to use, but Educanon can be used from within Edmodo.

Here are videos I created on each site.

Easy Formative Assessment

For English and math teachers, Edmodo has introduced a sweet app that makes formative assessment a snap.  Perhaps that's why it's name is "Snapshot."

Snapshot will quickly create an assessment based on the standards chosen by the teacher.  It is already loaded with the Virginia Standards of Learning.  The best part is that the teacher does not have to create the questions!!  How cool is that?

You could create a Shapshot for the beginning of the lesson, quickly create another for the middle to see where you should go with the rest of the lesson, and then create yet another at the end.  It's that easy.  Because Snapshot has a very large database of questions, the students do not receive the same questions in repeated assessments.

Once students complete the assessment, teachers have access to reports that indicate which standards students have mastered.

Even if you use Edmodo only for Snapshot, you will find it very worth your time.

Follow the link for instructions and videos:  Snapshot Support.

Free Resources for Writing

I just found this on EmergingEdTech.  I haven't looked at each one in depth yet, but they're free, so they're worth checking out.

8 Unique Free Resources Students Can Use to Improve Their Writing Skills

Free Stuff!!

Are you looking for free stuff to help you with technology integration?  Check out Russell Stannard's TTV site.  He has created many videos that explain how to use tools such as Edmodo, Prezi, Audacity . . . too many to list.

Go see for yourself here! --> TTV

Save Money on ScanTrons!

If you still give offline tests, save yourself and your school a TON of money by generating and printing your own ScanTron answer sheets.

The options and directions on this site are great. 

I advocate doing all testing and quizzing online in order to eliminate paper use, but if you must use paper, this is more cost effective than buying the answer sheets.

http://www.catpin.com/bubbletest/

Creating Infographs?

Infographs have become a popular way to share information using graphics and text together.  Two sites offer the opportunity to create them for FREE.  We like free in the education world.  While these are not the only sites that offer this opportunity, they are two I am sharing.  :)

The first is easel.ly.  Being a Mac girl, this is one of my favorite templates from that site.

The second site is infogr.am.  Below is an interesting creation by one of the users of the site.

Worldwide Survey of Mobile App Users | Create infographics

Inspiring Videos

Watch these inspiring videos about how education needs to change.  Prepare to be amped up to make a difference.

http://www.edutopia.org/blog/film-festival-meeting-kickoffs?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=post&utm_content=blog&utm_campaign=5minfilmfest

Visualizing Paper Waste

We really need to take this seriously in our schools.  We waste way too much paper on boring worksheets and other such boringness.
Source:  http://www.mnn.com/money/sustainable-business-practices/blogs/visualizing-paper-waste-infographic#

Earth as Art iPad App

Really sweet FREE iPad app by NASA--Earth as Art

Skills Poster

Source:  http://www.educatorstechnology.com/2012/11/a-must-have-poster-about-21st-century.html?goback=%2Egde_2811_member_187180359

National Geographic "My Ocean"

So I found this game in a post by National Geographic on Facebook.  I'm glad I'm not a Facebook hater.  :)

"My Ocean" is a matching game that "takes students on a journey through the Indian, Atlantic, Pacific, Antarctic, and Arctic Oceans."  Students will learn about food chains, ocean health, and conservation.

I have just begun with the Indian Ocean, but I like it so far.  I say it's worth checking out if you study the oceans with your students.

Click here to play "My Ocean."