Thing #12

I was amazed by all the tools that are apparently available to us. I realize that the list given to us to explore was just a tiny sampling of what's out there and that is just mind-boggling! Several of the tools were interesting to me and seemed relatively simple to use. First, I was immediately drawn to Mixbook http://www.mixbook.com . Using Mixbook, you can create your own interactive books using photos or artwork. I could just see endless possibilities for this both in the classroom and personally. I can see putting students' original stories/illustrations online for parents to see. The tool also allows the capability to create a printed version of the books. I can also imagine using mixbook to chronical the process when we do science projects or other types of ongoing projects throughout the year. This would be such a great addition to the whole process and something that students and parents would love!

Next, I looked at Quizlet http://quizlet.com/ This was a very neat tool where you can find pre-made online flashcards and games and you can create your own. I pulled up the game called "scatter" which was a multiplication facts game. On the screen were various equations and answers all mixed up. As you pulled the answers over to the correct equations, the equation and answer would disappear from the screen. This was a timed activity so students could basically compete against themselves to achieve automaticity in solving the equations. I thought this would be very useful to help kids prepare for quizzes but also just as a fun center activity or something they could even pull up at home if they had internet access.

I also looked at Blabberize http://blabberize.com and Letterpop http://letterpop.com/. Blabberize allows you to turn photos into talking cartoons. I could not get it to work on the sample page but it seemed like a fun tool to use. Letterpop interested me because it is used for creating newsletters, scrapbooks, and flyers. All of these things could be useful in the classroom and the scrapbook would also be fun to use personally to create a memory book from a vacation or just a family scrapbook that could be shared online with relatives.

I did wonder about the capability of using these tools in the classroom, though since you have to register for them with an e-mail account. I didn't know how many of them would actually be easily accessible given all the restrictions placed on our access by the school district. That would be my major concern.