Cut the clutter - Easy to Read

Some web pages are very attractive and interesting to look at. But sometimes, those same features can make it difficult to read, especially for a student who may be easily distracted. Along comes a great tool by arc90: the "readability" bookmarklet. Much like "Quietube", you drag the icon from arc90's page to your browser's button bar. Then, as you visit pages, you can "de-clutter" them by simply clicking on your "readability" button. Arc90 give you the option of selecting font sizes, page width and presentation style. You can even email or print the "clean" version!

Quietube - Youtube lite

Bookmarklets are "min-apps" you drag to your browser button bar, that allow you to automate certain tasks that you perform again and again. (Here's a site with some common examples: https://www.squarefree.com/bookmarklets/)

At a Metro tech meeting this week, Sandra from Langley passed on a great bookmarklet for Youtube users. Quietube strips away all the distracting side-bar material, and shows just the video clip itself (much like it would appear embedded in its own page.) It supports Youtube, BBC iPlayer, Viddler and Vimeo.( with more to come...)

Another great feature, is that Quietube generates a new URL you can email or link to that points to the stripped down page. Very slick!

Audio From Youtube

Occasionally, I'll find a Youtube clip of a lecture or presentation that has an audio track I want to listen to on my iPod, or perhaps I want to add a little piece to an iMovie I'm making. The "low-tech" way is to plug in earbuds, hold one earphone up to the computer's mic, and "play" the clip while iMovie records it. It works, but it's pretty low fidelity! Enter "ListentoYouTube": this site allows you to extract the audio as a downloadable mp3 file.

There is an advisory on the site that there are have been problems with the latest Youtube version, but I used LTYT successfully this past week: it worked like a charm.

(BTW, there are some pop-ups associated with this site, so you might want to have your pop-up blocker set to "stun"!)

You paste in the URL of the clip you want. The app chugs away for a bit, and then you'll get a link to click. This will open a new page; choose the ">>download mp3" link and you're in business. If you're on a Mac, you can choose to open the file in iTunes, and then put it on your iPod....or what ever.

It's really useful if you come across a Youtube clip of a lecture series, and you want to "take it with you" for listening later.

Schedules and Choices: Doodle

Have you ever tried to get a number of people to agree on a date by sending them an email? After multiple mail messages, each with its own history or updated status, everyone can be quite confused about the final date (or time.)

The same can be true with asking a group to make a choice: Chinese food, Italian or Spanish? Vacation in Maui, Montreal or Europe? What's the best gift for Mom and Dad?

My suggestion is to try DOODLE. You create a set of choices and then email the URL to all participants. They can then add themselves, add their choice and the app keeps track of the results.

You could use this with a class to help them define a study question or refine a project direction. Or even for students to arrange a get-together for teamwork.

TIMEGLIDER - timeline maker

TIMEGLIDER is an easy-to-use, fully featured timeline maker that makes professional, scalable graphic representations of chronological events. Perfect for a student to use, and suitable even for a professional "stand and deliver".







You can add dates, images and links and even view 2 timelines simultaneously. How could you use this? A student could map events in a novel against real world events in the same time period, compare the rise of two civilizations, or show the unfolding of a major historical incident.

In order to use this great app, you will need to create an account (an email address is required.)

The Worldbook online (available in many school districts) also has a timeline gereator that has some similar features.

Timeline generators are just one more interesting way to allow kids to demonstrate their learning and thinking.

Capture that Youtube vid

So you've found that perfect video clip that illustrates the concept you want to introduce to the class. You've made a note of the Youtube address, or the embed code and are ready to show it to your class. You've connected the projector, fired up Firefox, and *disaster*, Youtube is blocked in your district!

What to do? This is where Voobys comes in handy. (There are a couple of other sites that work in a similar way: www.keepvid.com for example.)

Here's what you do:
(adapted from: http://www.wikihow.com/Download-YouTube-Videos-Using-Voobys)

1. Go to http://www.youtube.com/
2. Type your search term in the search bar.
3. Click on the video link so that it loads in the current window.
4. As soon as you're on the desired page, go to the Address bar (where you typed in www.youtube.com) and just erase the word "youtube", substituting for it for the word "voobys".
   
5. Download the video. This will take you to a page that allows you to download the video. Click the "Download Video" link that and choose the "save as" destination.

The resulting file can be burned to a CD or played directly from your computer.

Of course, you'll have to do all this from your home computer, if Youtube is blocked at your school. (As an additional ironic note, Voobys is unaccessible from my work site!)

Be an Artist: Create your own still life

I was at a meeting with some Elementary Computer teachers in my district, looking at some web-based drawing programs, and I mentioned the "Still Life" Painter on the US National Gallery of Art site. If you haven't seen it, it is worth a visit.

While it can be a little slow to load (depending on your connection), it's great fun. Students can view a "typical" still life composition and then take a turn creating their own, using the various elements provided. You can choose the table, the drape, the background, the fruit, the bowls and additional elements. Then you can add a "paint" effect to personalize your creation. The interface allows the student to create 8 different versions and hold them in "frames" along the right side of the screen (activated by the "look" button.)

From the site:

[Students] can explore spatial arrangement, perspective, proportion, and balance while creating engaging, interactive still life compositions that mix everyday objects with elements borrowed from famous works of art.

While there is a print feature, it seemed a little buggy, so I just used SHIFT+APPLE+4 on my Mac to snap png images of my work. The finished products can be viewed in Preview as a slide show.

http://www.nga.gov/kids/zone/stilllife.htm

SKRBL: An interactive whiteboard

A while back, I reviewed Dabbleboard and recommended it as an easy virtual whiteboard. Here's another great Web-based tool for collaboration. Skrbl allows you to create a space and invite others to view and modify what you are working on.

As it says on the website:

Sketch, text, share files, upload pictures all in one common shared space. There are no new tools to learn, nothing to download, nothing to install.

Here's a link to try your own skrbl space.

If the World was 100 people

For those looking at sustainability, or communities, or global issues, this miniature earth site is a great thought provoker.

(It can also be found as a Youtube upload - with different music)


Want to explore this idea further?

1. Some history behind the concept: click here
2. Here's another Flash video with slightly different stats: click here.
3. Some great poster ideas...could be a good art project! click here.
4. Here's another visual representation: click here.
5. And very ambitious project spin-off from 100people.org: click here.

Web-based music composition: Noteflight

I just stumbled across a great web-based tool for musicians: Noteflight. If you want to compose, and share your works with others, this site is perfect. Users can save their creations in an individual account, and email a link or embed the score on a blog or web-page. There's even a teaching module (which costs $) for music instructors to use.

Compositions can be printed or exported in a variety of formats (you need the latest Flash plug in installed) such as midi or wav files. The online documentation is very extensive and give a good idea of what this program can do.

A great tool, especially for Music Composition and Technology teachers!

Here's a sample I created:

Smart Boards: Try a Jigsaw Puzzle!

Are you looking for a novel way to use SmartBoards in your class? Why not have your students work on a puzzle? This could be a fun stations activity for younger students, a chance to practice shape recognition or even a rainy weather "in-day" lunch option.

Take a look at the JigZone. You can pick the design and number of pieces. And you can compette in teams to see who can assemble the puzzles the fastest. Viewed full-screen on a SmartBoard, it's great fun.

Here's one to try:

Reader's Advisory: Bookwink

One of the great things about working with kids is the opportunity to suggest titles you think they'll enjoy, and then talk about the book with them later. But how can we keep on top of all the great material out there?

Here's a nice site (Bookwink) to help busy teachers and TLs that suggests books by theme, title, grade and author.

It's definitely worth a look.

Create Comics on-line

I know that many teachers have begun using comic creation as a way to springboard into composition: students can use the "3 panel" format to sketch out a scene and then flesh out the scenario in prose. For younger students, it can also be a great way to build simple stories....and it's fun too!

Comic Life gives students lots of great options, but if you don't have a Mac, or you don't have it installed, you may feel left out.

There are two web-based comic creators that just might fill the gap. While your options are limited (scenes, props, characters are all preset), you can still have fun building a scene. Stripgenerator has a very "Jetsons" feel and gives extra options if you create an account. My preference would be to create without an account and then print or take a screen shot (SHIFT-APPLE-4) and save to the desktop. The downside of this site is that some of the user created strips might not be appropriate for a younger audience.

A more "realistic" looking strip is easy to create with "Make Beliefs". What I like with this second option is the many story suggestions and idea starters that the site provides. (In addition, there is no requirement to create an account and students aren't distracted by work others have created.)

=======

Just as a little extra, if you are planning to teach comics as an art form, there is a wealth of info in the gURL site to get you "savvy". (I'd use this more as a teacher resource since some of the referring links might not work with younger students!)

Easy-to-use Web-based Whiteboard

I've tried a number of "whiteboard" products and I have to admit that Dabbleboard is easy and intuitive to use. While is doesn't have every single feature (ie resizable text), you can manipulate objects quickly, draw free-hand, insert text, add colour and insert images. You can download your production as a png file or sign up and keep it in your account. Dabbleboard also allows you to create a library of shapes you use often, so you don't have to start from scratch each time. And if you want to illustrate a point quickly, DB lets you draw without having an account: just click on the "Get Started" button and choose the new/or clear icon in the upper lefthand corner of the draw window.

Here's a sample:

Movie Clips to Illustrate your point

Are you looking for that perfect 3 to 5 minutes clip to kick off your Math or Science lesson? Or maybe a short discussion starter to keep your students' interest high? I think "The Futures Channel" might be the solution. Each videoclip has an associated page with a lesson idea and a downloadable PDF that you can use with your class. The material is appropriate for Intermediate and above. There are also some interesting Pro-D clips of Kay Toliver and Jamie Escalante speaking about Math instruction, and even modeling a lesson. (sample here)