Cool Comics

On my last post, I mentioned some Web 2.0 tools that I wanted to explore. I began my exploration with PikiStrips, an online comic creator. However, as I was looking for examples of PikiStrips use in education, I came across a children's version of the same tool called PikiKids. Since the majority of my students are in second through fourth grade, I decided to try PikiKids instead.

Sign-up for PikiKids is simple, as is the creation of a comic. Users are guided through the process of selecting a layout for the comic strip and colors for the border and cell background. They are also guided through the uploading and/or accessing of images, inserting of text bubbles, and the application of different effects. Once the project is complete, the user can select a privacy setting. If the privacy setting for the comic strip is set to public, others will be able to comment on and rate the project. The user can also download the project or place the embed code on a wiki or blog. Although the comic creator is free, items such as mugs and t-shirts can be purchased with user-created comics.

Here's a sample comic strip I just created:



Notice the effects I applied on the two larger pictures. The picture on the top has a sketch effect, while the picture on the bottom has a comic effect. My daughters both sat with me as I put the comic strip together, and they LOVED it. This is definitely a tool I would like to use with my students.

So Many Tools, So Little Time

The more I look into Web 2.0, the more I find tools that I have never used before but would love to try. Reading my classmates' blogs today, I became intrigued with digital storytelling and VoiceThread. Shortly thereafter, I came across several other tools online that I'd like to explore as well.

PikiStrips - Online comic creator
Teacher Tube - Online community for sharing instructional videos and lesson plans
Glogster - Interactive poster creator
Imbee - Social network for teachers that extends to the classroom

I seem to be finding something new each day, which leads me to believe that I will need to narrow my area of interest soon. In the meantime, I will look into these tools and keep you posted on what I find.

I was reading a blog post on The Elementary Educator today, and I was intrigued by the author's thoughts on teaching students in, what he calls, a Web 2.0 world. He says that teachers need to make their classrooms compatible with the Web 2.0 generation and offers the following suggestions for them to do so:

1. Go faster/talk less
2. Make the subject matter meaningful to students
3. Design assignments around a real purpose and a specific audience
4. Use Web 2.0 technology (keeping in mind, of course, that using these tools with no specific purpose is useless)

After reading the post, it occurred to me that teaching this generation of "digital natives" requires more than just implementing some innovative Web 2.0 projects in class. It also requires a change in how we teach them.

Google in Education

As I was looking for information, ideas, and examples of Web 2.0 use in the elementary classroom, I came across a list of various Google tools for educators. Although I was familiar with Google Docs, the others were new to me. Check out the links below to learn more about the tools that caught my attention:

• Google Docs provides a web-based word processor, spreadsheet, and presentation editor that can be accessed from any computer. It is secure and perfect for collaborative projects.
• Google Groups can be used to create discussion groups for a class.
• Google Book Search allows teachers and students to preview current or out-of-print books. Full text of some books are also available. Users can add books to a shared library.
• Google News makes it easy to browse the headlines of various newspapers and magazines on a single page. It also provides access to archived news and primary sources.

I think these tools have a great deal of educational potential, and I can see how they could be used with middle and high school students. However, I'm not sure if and how I would use them with my 2nd-4th graders. Any ideas??

Selecting a Topic of Study

As a second through fourth grade computer teacher, I am always looking for meaningful and effective ways of integrating technology into the core curriculum (i.e. language arts, math, and social studies). For the next eight weeks, I will be exploring various Web 2.0 tools and looking for ways in which they can be used to support and/or enhance teaching and learning at the elementary school level.

Podcasting for Self-Assessment

As part of the second grade curriculum in our school, students choose a short poem to memorize and recite to the class on a monthly basis. The second grade teachers encourage their students to speak loudly, clearly, and with expression in their voice.

As I helped my daughter practice her poem this week (she happens to be a second grader at the school where I teach), it occurred to me that creating a podcast of the students reciting their poems would not only be fun, but it would also be educational. What if the podcast could be used by the students as a self-assessment tool? They can listen to their recording and decide for themselves whether they met the teachers’ criteria for speaking loudly, clearly, and with expression.

I decided to put this to the test by having my daughter recite her poem as I recorded her. I then played back the recording after she was finished. Even before I had a chance to comment on it, she was already telling me what she had done well and what she needed to improve. Without prompting her to do so, she had successfully used the podcast as a self-assessment tool.

Click on the link below to hear my daughter as she recites her November poem.
http://littbytes.mypodcast.com (Student Recites Poem)

Storybook PowerPoint

Two weeks ago, my middle school students began working on a PowerPoint project that has quickly become a favorite of mine. For this particular project, students are asked to write a children’s story. After they have finished the writing and peer editing process, students separate their stories into “pages” and copy them into PowerPoint (each “page” is the equivalent of a PowerPoint slide). Once this is done, the real fun begins. Students then create illustrations for their “pages” in one of two ways. They either draw the pictures from scratch on Paint, or they use clip art from the Internet. After the illustrations are laid out, the students then apply animation effects to the illustrations in the form of custom motion paths.

Click on the link below to see complete, written instructions for the Storybook PowerPoint.
http://docs.google.com/Doc?id=dgbwvk79_0hsmsr8

Click on the link below to see a rough draft (no animations yet) of a Storybook PowerPoint created by R.K., a student in my Computer Studies 1 class.
http://docs.google.com/Doc?id=dgbwvk79_3gj55tw

After the Storybook PowerPoints are completed, the students will have the opportunity to share their stories with children in the second grade. I have arranged for one of the second grade classes in our school to join us next week so that the middle school students can read the stories to them. I can't wait to see how it turns out!