It is the end of the year and time to stop and look back at what has been accomplished. I’m happy to realize that tech classes at the elementary school have taken a step further by using collaborative web2.0 tools that offer students the means to attain 21st century skills. Thank you to my PLN (personal learning network) friends and colleagues at school that have taught me about them. I feel grateful to have this amazing learning network that has made me open my mind to new digital class tools.
I would like to share with you ten free Web 2.0 tools that my students have used during 2010 in the computer lab. They are in no specific order and are all amazing!
1- Titanpad
Titanpad was a totally successful collaborative tool in class. My students belong to upper elementary and most of them do not have gmail accounts nor have had any experience with google docs yet. For this reason, students were introduced to titanpad, an online tool similar to google docs, where several students can participate in the creation of a common word processing document being able to make simultaneous modifications and additions. Students were deeply engaged. Some continued to work on the assignment at home and some have convinced their homeroom teacher to let them use titanpad for further class assignments such as group research and presentations.
2- Scribblemaps
Our social studies mapping units are in the process of changing. Old activities are being revised and new ones are emerging. Scribblemaps is an amazing web 2.0 tool that provides an online world map that allows students to draw and add text on top of it, and once the final map image is ready, it may be emailed to the teacher. Fifth graders used it to plot explorers’ voyages coming to the new world giving them a more authentic vision of the actual explorers’ journeys.
3- Twiddla
As a follow-up on collaborative tools, students were introduced to twiddla to experience drawing in a realtime online whiteboard with a group of classmates. To my surprise, and probably to their surprise too, it was harder for them to draw a picture than to type a story together with a friend. The perfectionist side in them may have appeared, not allowing them to work as smoothly.
4- Kerpoof
Students in third grade created animated movies using Kerpoof. The website is quite friendly and it was easy for students to rapidly understand the concept of animation timelines, movements, and audio. They enjoyed working in groups, helping each other create the animations. Many of them later at home obtained an account (parental permission is needed) and were able to save their new productions. This free web 2.0 tool can not only create videos, it also offers features such as spell a picture, make a card, make a drawing, tell a story, and more. It is total fun.
This awesome website, Professor Garfield, lets students create comic strips using new and previously-created characters, props, backgrounds, and speech bubbles. It is easy to use and it is fun. It also includes several comic activities that help students understand a variety of comic strip concepts.
Students used Wacky Web Tales to fill in madlibs and create funny stories. Every time they have used it, students have practiced their grammar skills as they answered the blank spaces with adjectives, nouns, verbs, and more.
7- Grand Prix
This website has been a favorite for students practicing multiplication skills. In Grand Prix they create a car race and online participants enter the competition. Once the race starts, they have to solve multiplication problems to be able to advance. The faster they solve the problems, the faster the car runs. This website has been a first choice whenever students finish their work before the end of the period and still have some free time.
8- Boolify
Boolify has been a convenient website that has helped students visually understand the way search engines work. Students drag puzzle pieces together using ANDs, Ors, and NOTs to filter search results. Moreover, websites that are finally listed only contain information that is age-appropriate for elementary students.
9- Wallwisher
Wallwisher is a collaborative online board where students post online stickies to answer a question displayed by the teacher. Teachers have used it to post questions about books that are being read in class as well as new concepts that are being studied. It has been an engaging way to have students read other students’ ideas and push their thinking even further.
10- Glogster
Glogster encourages students to create online posters that share their learning using pictures, text, music and videos. Fourth and fifth graders were able to use their creativity and share their knowledge about technology at the beginning of the year using this great website.
The list above presents only ten web tools that were useful in our tech classes, and of course, we all know there are many more out there. I would love to read any comments you have about these websites or any others you have used. It's always enriching to learn how other teachers use web tools in their classes.
I wish all of you a happy new year and I hope we can learn more from each other during the coming year. I’m convinced that learning never stops and there is always more to discover. Best wishes!!
These are engaging and relevant tools for our students, helping teachers to further participate in the discussion of integrating technology into the curriculum. I would like to hear your thoughts on how we measure the success of these tools. For example, is success measured simply by the use of these tools, how often they are used or how much of the curriculum they substitute?
ReplyDeleteKatharine
I enjoy the time and effort that you put into your blog. It is not an easy thing to keep up with. Did you join/enter into the iLearnTechnology PLN. It is a great way of promoting your blog outside of just those you know and you will get some great feedback from new readers. Let me know if you are interested in learning more about it if you don't already know how to become a part of it.
ReplyDeleteHappy New Year!
Hi Katharine,
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comment! The question you are posing sounds very interesting, but hard to answer, at least for me. There must be research out there that might have better answers than the ones I can give you. However, there’s one thing I do know, from my personal experience: When I’m engaged, motivated, and having fun, I forget about the world and I learn really well. What I see in the lab is that while students are doing their work, they are deeply engaged, they are excited about what they are doing, they are working in their natural digital way and they are quite motivated to perform a good job. In my opinion, all this creates a wonderful learning environment… the rest depends on how the teacher uses it for instruction.
Marybell
Hi Sean,
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comments and the tip on iLearnTechnology PLN. It sounds like a great idea. I will look into it soon and will let you know if I need help.
Have a good day,
Marybell