FTT - Vibby

Sharing Specific YouTube Video Content With Your Students

@joe_edtech / @LisaBerghoff

Warning, the beginning of this blog is a red herring - included because I simply couldn't believe a certain reality. Lisa and I both had an opportunity to attend a pretty remarkable professional development opportunity in the Houston school district. Instructional Technology professionals from across the country got together and visited some pretty innovative magnet schools in a very economically challenged part of the city. After the site visit, we all gathered and talked about some of the things we saw happening in the classes and somebody said something like, "I think it is great you can embed YouTube videos into your website, but what can we do? YouTube is blocked in our district." (I will return to the discussion of the innovative classrooms later, at the moment I am going to wallow in the righteous indignation of someone who can't believe there are school districts who still block YouTube!)

"Start at:" in YouTube

So, I get it. There is a lot of garbage on YouTube. But there is a lot of good stuff on YouTube, too. Blocking YouTube is something akin to slicing off not just your nose to spite your face, but your head to spite your face. Silly.

However, not only are there a lot of videos on YouTube I'd like to share with my students, there are a lot of PARTS of YouTube videos I'd like to share with my students. Here are two ways to better focus your lessons on the specific video content.

From YouTube itself, you can share a video with your students and have it start at a specific point. When you are on YouTube, queue the video to your preferred starting point. Then, rather than simply copying the URL and posting the link on your website or in an email, you can click the "Share" link found underneath the video, click the button to "Start at:" a certain moment in the video. Then copy the custom link that appears in the "Share" window with your students.

Alternatively, if you would like to share parts of a longer video with your students, you can use a tool called Vibby. After you create a free account, you can select any YouTube video and "Highlight" specific sections. You can choose 1 section, or several. After you title each section, or add a brief note, you can share a custom link with your students. They will only see the sections of the video you've highlighted. One of the things that makes Vibby a great tool for school is that your students don't need an account to watch you custom video. When they click the link you sent them, they see something like this:

While Vibby is a great tool for sharing videos with your students, if you want to use YouTube videos to "Flip" your lessons or embed questions in YouTube videos, check out these posts:

• Supporting Flipped, Blended, and Differentiated Learning with EDpuzzle.com
• Embed Interactive Video Into Your Classroom With eduCanon
• Making Sense Out of Flipped Lessons

FTT - Symbaloo

Symbaloo Logo

Manage Your Resources In The Cloud: Symbaloo

@LisaBerghoff/@Joe_EdTech

So many teachers are transforming their classrooms by moving their resources online.  One of the biggest decisions to make when doing this is: How am I going to organize everything?  You want a system that is easy for students to use, accessible to everyone, and simple for you to manage. You may have seen Symbaloo in the past.  This is not a new tool. However, as your needs change it is important to think about finding the best tool for the job for your classroom.  There is not one right answer here and so we as teachers need to put on our problem-based learning hats and solve this one for ourselves.  It is an ongoing process and it's a good idea to revisit some tools that we may have seen in the past.   Symbaloo is one tool to consider when looking to organize your digital information online.  

Symbaloo allows you to make a "webmix", which is a compilation of tiles that link to your online resources.  There is also a Symbaloo gallery that has webmixes already created for you.  Here is a link to  one that I found called "secondary math" . An image of this Symbaloo webmix is shown below.

Your webmix can be embedded on your website or posted as a link to your Google Classroom or other LMS that you might be using.  Anyone using your site can just click on the tiles to be directed to your various online resources.  The use of tiles really helps kids who need the visual cues as opposed to clicking links that are just text based.  I love this tool for reluctant readers or second language learners.

Another great use for Symbaloo is for organizing the online tools that you curate for yourself.  As we fine new websites that we may want to use in our classes, we often decide to bookmark them.  What happens is that our bookmarks tab gets cluttered and we often don't go back and use them because we can no longer find them.  Consider creating a Symbaloo webmix for your own personal organization system.  You can even take this one step further and have students research online tools and create a Symbaloo webmix that shows what they have found.  These webmixes are easy to share, edit, and categorize.  

Do you have favorite tools for organizing your online treasures?  If so, post in the comments below. 

FTT - Interactive Timelines

Rethinking History With Interactive Time Lines

@joe_edtech/@LisaBerghoff

Creating historical time lines is certainly not something that is new to education. However, creating interactive time lines online really does represent teaching "above the line" in the SAMR model. And in fact, with the power and versatility of these tools, you can do some really outside the box things with interactive time lines. 

When I started writing this post, I was looking at a "free" tool called Tiki Toki - and I haven't even linked it here because the free version is incredibly limiting. But it really sparked my interest because in addition to being able to create traditional time lines of events, enhanced with video, pictures, maps, and text, the creators suggested you could use it to create enhanced project time lines. For instance, if there is a complex, multifaceted group project your students are working on, they could input dates, details, and goals into the time line to help organize their thinking. However, like I said, the free version of Tiki Toki really only lets you create one fairly static time line. When it comes to educational tools - one size does not fit all, and there is usually more than one good choice.

So, I went searching for something better, and genuinely free to use. Christopher Pappas of eLearning Industry provides a list of 10 truly free interactive time line creation tools specifically for the classroom. In my opinion, the best of this list, and one that is completely compatible with Chromebooks, is called myHistro. Combining a truly easy to use multimedia platform with all of the very best ideas from Google Maps, myHistro provides students with a platform for explaining historical events, planning trips, functions, or projects, mapping out important events or plot developments in a piece of literature, or organizing and archiving personal trips. The embedded video below explains how to get a free myHistro account and how to get started on time line creation:

One way to introduce this tool is to provide this software as an option for your students if you are having them create a project for your class. Rather than having them make a PowerPoint presentation or a Prezi, give them the option of making a myHistro time line.

FTT - Canva

Easily Create Beautiful Designs and Documents with Canva

@joe_edtech/@LisaBerghoff  

I talk to so many teachers who say "Oh, I'm really not a tech person".  Of course those of us who are into growth mindset understand that all that really means is that it will take time, hard work, and perseverance to improve on those skills.

Well, I'm here to tell you that I'm REALLY not a design person. The part of people's brains that makes sense of space and where things go in a room, on a page, or even clothing on a body just doesn't seem to be present in my brain.  I do, however, enjoy using tools that make it seem like I am a design person because I can still create amazing images even though I've had a little help.  I also understand the importance of visuals in the classroom and if you're going to use them, the quality needs to be fantastic.

Think about your students.  You probably have some amazingly creative students and you probably have some students who cringe at any sort of artistic project. We know that students learn best when they have multiple opportunities to work with new information in different ways.  Therefore, we often ask our students to create presentations but we don't give them information about basic principles of design and so we end up looking at powerpoint presentations that are filled with tiny text or images that crowd the screen.  That is why I'm excited to introduce you to Canva.com.

Canva allows you to create presentations, social media graphics, online posters, magazine covers, documents, marketing materials, etc. that look fantastic with very little experience in the world of design.  The website is free (there is also an ipad app) and there are thousands of free open source images to use, as well as some options for purchase.   Of course you can always use your own images and easily drag and drop them right into your Canva design.

Canva was founded by Melanie Perkins, who was teaching graphic design programs at the University of Western Australia.  When she realized that many of her students struggled with the basics on tope of trying to learn complicated programs, she decided to create an online tool that would allow new students to experience success with less frustration.

                                                                   

Screenshot of Canva Design School

The drag and drop format of Canva makes creating professional looking visuals straightforward and non-threatening.  There is also a "design school" tab with tutorials and teaching materials intended for classroom use. I managed to successfully navigate three of the basic interactive tutorials in about 15 minutes. The beginner's challenges  highlight basic principles such as the benefits of color and the idea that less is more.  Some of these may seem obvious to you, but to me (and many of your students) it was helpful to see and interact with the examples to observe the differences in design.  The Canva blog is fascinating and covers topics such as Powerful Examples of Visual Propaganda, and Build Your Brand: How To Choose The Right Fonts. 

I highly recommend that you take a few minutes to check out Canva.  You can easily create wonderful visuals to use in your teaching, or have your students get creative and share with you, each other, or the world.  How do you use the power of visuals in your classroom?  Post in the comments section below.

Canva image created by Lisa Berghoff

FTT - ActivelyLearn

Turn Any Text Into An Interactive Text With Actively Learn

@joe_edtech/@LisaBerghoff

Note: This is a repost from last year. I'm not cheating on my Free Tech Tool Tuesday posts, there have been a lot of updates to ActivelyLearn and I think it is worth another look. While I always suggest reading the whole blog post, click here for a synopsis of all that is new since the last time I posted about this. 

For years I have started presentations on integrating technology into the classroom by saying 21st century learners do NOT have short attention spans, they are simply not engaged by the kinds of classroom activities that engaged us when we were kids. My 13 year old daughter provides me with a perfect illustration of my point. 

I have heard from her teachers that at times she seems bored with their lectures and with some of their learning exercises, so she must have a really short attention span. Well, I don't think so. The last time the two of us drove to St. Louis from our home in the Chicago Suburbs (by the way, the most boring drive on planet earth) she spent the entire 5 hours actively engaged in building a city on MineCraft - a game, I might add, that has graphics that are less advanced than the Atari Game System I played when I was a kid. (By the way, Cognitive Psychologist Daniel T. Willingham offers some evidence to back up my mantra in his recent article, "Smartphones Don't Make Us Dumb.")

So, if it isn't the flashy graphics and ear pounding soundtrack, what do you like so much about MineCraft? She says, "It's fun. I can make decisions about what to do. If I get stuck, I can ask questions or look up answers. And if I build something I don't like, I can quick tear it down and build it better." I heard her say those words and I translated it into classroom speak: inquiry, autonomy, interactivity, the ability to make mistakes and then fix them.

So what if we applied just a few of those things to the practice of reading her school assignments? What if instead of receiving a static textbook or handout, she read on her mobile device and her teachers were able to ask her specific questions about what she read, point out things that are important in the reading and explain why they are important, and even embed videos to illustrate the point or provide a little direct instruction while she was at home? ActivelyLearn.com does all of that, supports any electronic text, and is incredibly simple to learn. 

Here is a brief intro from the ActivelyLearn.com website:

To get started, all you need to do is navigate to ActivelyLearn.com, create a free account as a teacher, and then create your first class. There are thousands of texts and lessons already included in ActivelyLearn.com, they may already have the text you are using for class. Once you've selected a text to use, you can embed questions, highlight important passages, provide the students with notes, embed videos, and monitor each individual's progress as they read. If they don't have your text, you can upload your own - however, with the free version of the program, you are limited in the number of digital texts you can upload.

A screenshot of my ActivelyLearn Workspace. Caution: Some of these features
are only available in the premium version - like importing G Docs.

ActivelyLearn will automatically generate an email you can send to your students to help them get signed up for your class, but I've created a one page handout you can share with them in order to get them signed up and signed on. (Click here for the "Signing Up For ActivelyLearn" Handout.)

ActivelyLearn works with any platform or device with an Internet connection, and there is a robust help section for both teachers and students. Click here for a list of video resources for getting started with and using ActivelyLearn.
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Are there other FREE tech tools you use to help support close or interactive reading with your students? If so, please tell us about them in the comment section below.

FTT - Booktrack Classroom

Booktrack Classroom: 

Read With A Soundtrack Or Create Your Own

@joe_edtech/@LisaBerghoff

I have been teaching reading, along with other subjects, to struggling learners for many years. Every subject area requires some interaction with text and as teachers, it is up to us to  find ways to guide students to improve their reading skills.  In order to be an effective reading teacher, I am constantly searching for ways to get kids excited about what they are reading.  One of the most powerful methods that I have found to hook kids into a story is to add audio as well as visuals. During a read aloud I often toss in a "Dun Dun Duuuuuuunnnn" at the end of a cliffhanger chapter.  Or, I will ask my students to imagine what they are reading as a movie going on in their mind. As teachers, we will do just about anything to help kids get into the reading. We want them to decode, comprehend, make connections and inferences as they interact with text.  We also know that music and sound has a profound affect on our kids.  Booktrack Classroom capitalizes on the compelling use of sound to enhance reading.

BookTrack Classroom is an application found in the Chrome Web Store that allows you and your students to create a movie-style soundtrack to go along with e-text. It currently has a library with some of the classics, including Frankenstein, A Tale Of Two Cities, and Macbeth, which already have soundtracks created.  The reader adjusts the reading speed so the soundtrack plays while you are reading and adds to your reading experience.  But wait, before you decide Booktrack classroom is not for you because you don't teach those books, you need to know about the other features of Booktrack Classroom.

It also allows students to create a soundtrack for any essay, story, or text that they can copy into the Booktrack studio. They can also generate and publish Booktracks for their own writing! (This is where you should be getting excited) Students can add sound effects, ambient sound, and/or background music to enhance the tone of their original essays, stories, poetry, or whatever they write.  We spend a lot of time talking about tone, theme, and figurative language in the classroom. Why not let our students show that they understand these concepts by choosing a piece of writing and creating a Booktrack to go along with it?  I'm already working on my Halloween ghost story so I can add amazing sound effects!  Booktrack Classroom does not provide text to speech, students must read on their own or do a read aloud.  This app allows you to sign in using your Google credentials, and it works even without an internet connection.

The app is currently free (for a "limited time") and includes complete lesson plans on topics such as sound and symbol, persuasive branding, and The Odyssey.

Check out the Booktrack Video here:

Do you have other apps or ideas for new ways to help kids get into their reading and writing?  I'd love to hear them!  Post them in the comments section below.

FTT - StayFocusd

Helping Kids Teach Themselves To Avoid Distractions

@joe_edtech

One of my favorite blogs is "Mind Shift: How we will learn," a product of Northern California's Public Media outlet KQED. One of their posts that came up in my Twitter feed this weekend was called "Age of Distraction: Why It's Crucial for Students to Learn to Focus." There have actually been a ton of studies done on this dating back to the 1970s. Some of my favorite pieces have come from Daniel T. Willingham, cognitive psychologist from the University of Virginia. Both the studies featured in the "Mind Shift" article and the ones from Willingham suggest that it is important for educators and parents to help kids learn how to manage distractions, especially distractions that are readily available to them on digital devices. This research, by the way, is one of the reasons I don't support the idea of simply blocking social media and other sites on school devices. That doesn't teach them discipline; it actually ignores the long term issue.

However, as you know, kids learn differently. Some of them require a little more direct instruction and a little more scaffolding of skills. StayFocusd is a free extension, available in the Chrome Web Store, that can offer a little assistance to kids who need it. One of the problems for some kids, and perhaps this director of instructional technology, is that they can get lost on distracting websites and not even know how much time they waste there. StayFocusd can help quantify wasted time and allow students to limit wasted time.

StayFocusd in the Chrome Web Store

The Nuclear Option

Once you add the extension to Chrome, you can set your own time limits on websites that might be distracting you from your real work. You can decide to enact the "Nuclear Option," which means, for instance, that you can set a specific amount of time that you are allowed to spend on Facebook. When that time limit is reached, Chrome will shut down that tab and the program won't allow you to navigate to the site again for 24 hours. You can also set an "active" calendar, meaning that StayFocusd will always manage your browser during school days, but on the weekends and during holidays, you can grant yourself a little more browsing time. For students who are afraid they might cheat and change the settings, there is a "Challenge" option. "If this option is selected, you will be required to complete a difficult -- but not impossible -- challenge before you are allowed to change any settings. This makes it inconvenient for you to change settings, therefore reducing the chances that you'll cheat" (StayFocusd settings page).

For some teachers, StayFocusd falls short of their ideal because it doesn't allow teachers or counselors to directly manage the student machines. However, I see that as a strength, because what we are really doing is providing the tools necessary for kids to teach themselves to be in control of their devices and their digital lives.

If there is a student you think could benefit from StayFocusd, please share it with them - and maybe their parents, too.