clyp.it for Recording Audio Clips

I think one of the most underutilized features of an iPad, or any device, in the classroom is the ability to record audio.  I'm not just talking about shy students finding a voice because they can record their thoughts and press 'Play' instead of talking in front of the whole classroom.  Instead I'm talking about students recording their thoughts about their learning.  Many times it's quicker and easier to hit 'Record' and let your brain work it's way through the learning process instead of trying to get it all down on virtual paper.  There are a bunch of tools that allow you to record and also use another app at the same time, which is key when you have an iPad.

One tool I discovered today on FreeTech4Teachers.com is called Clyp.it and it is pretty simple to use to record and share audio files.  You can export to AirDrop, Mail, Google Classroom, amongst others.  It also works if you just visit the website on a laptop but for an iOS device or an Android you'll have to get the app

Teach 100

I am always looking for the ways that our staff can learn new technologies and new trends to use in their classrooms.  Teach 100 is a site listing the top 100 blogs about teaching.   This blog list is dedicated to teaching in general so you will find a great variety of highly rated blog sites about teaching.  Many of the blogs on the site are around technology too.  http://teach.com/teach100/blogs

Here are a few of my favorites from the list:

• TECH & LEARNING
• MINDSHIFT
• EDUDEMIC
• TEACHTHOUGHT
• THE INNOVATIVE EDUCATOR
• FREE TECHNOLOGY FOR TEACHERS

Check them out and let your fellow teachers know about these great resources.

Write in NewsELA

I've written about my affinity for NewsELA in the past because it gives current events which teachers and students can change to their reading level.  It's great for addressing non-fiction and current events in the classroom.  Today they've released a new feature called Write that allows students to respond to a prompt from NewsELA or from one that's teacher created.  Here's a bit from their description:

Thanks for taking a moment to explore the Write feature. For each article, Newsela has created a prompt, which is a question designed to elicit feedback from students that demonstrates their reading comprehension. You can use the Newsela-created prompt or you can create your own prompt.

Follow these steps to get started:

1. Assign an article.
2. Choose a prompt.
3. Show students how to respond to the prompt.
4. Review your students' responses.

School Board at Lincoln

Today I got to spend some time with Mrs. Brown at Lincoln Elementary and some of the cabinet and school board members.  The students had all chosen something to share that they were doing with their tablets that they were excited about, like coding, math games, Edmodo Snapshots, amongst others.  We had the opportunity to wander around and get little tutorials from each student about the app, why they liked it, and how they used it in class.

I saw kids who were proud of what they were accomplishing, excited about learning and energetic.  I asked a few kids if they preferred their tablets over paper and books and the results were mixed.  Everyone agreed the tablets were great but some still like to be able to draw and read on paper, which I hope never goes away.

Most impressive to me was that the students owned the time and they were the experts.  Mrs. Brown didn't really have to do much except answer some questions from the visitors.  The kids stole the show. Great job!  I can't wait to see what you have in store for the technology showcase.

Students have started to blog about their experience here

Pop Up Videos with Explain Everything

Explain Everything is the best app for creation in education, hands down.  Nothing beats it for what it can do and how drop-dead easy it is to do things.  Today I saw a tweet about creating a pop up video, like the ones we old timers used to watch on VH-1 back in the 80's, using Explain Everything.  It may sound complicated but with a bit of trial and error I guarantee you that students will figure it out and then show you how to do it.

Greg Kulowiec has a set of instructions and a video detailing the process here.  He has a great blog, The History 2.0 Classroom, that is worth following.  He is also very good to see live if you ever get the chance.

Inklewriter - Choose Your Own Adventure

Just the other day I wrote about Twine, a website that allows you to make a choose-your-own-adventure story.  Today on Twitter I read about another one that looked just as good called Inklewriter.  This one was a bit trickier to learn how to use but don't let that stop you, look at the tutorial if you can't figure it out, because this one makes really good looking stories that kids will want to share and read.

Here's a sample just so you can see what they look like and how you interact with them.

If I was a classroom teacher I would pounce on this opportunity to let kids create.  Plus, this doesn't necessarily have to be an ELA classroom.  You could use this in Science to plot out what would happen in an experiment.  In Math you could diagram right and wrong ways to solve a problem.  In Social Studies you could recreate the historical footsteps of famous individuals or events.  The opportunities for creation are limitless.  Give it a shot!

Google Classroom User Guides for App

Google just released two user guides, a student and teacher version, for their apps.  They are useful for learning the ins and outs of the system.