Opening Windows

Update – 4-12-11:
This list is getting too cumbersome to edit so it has been moved to – http://tech-tool-list.wikispaces.com/

I have been compiling this list for a while and thought it was time to share it. It is by no means comprehensive and definitely a living document. Feel free to suggest your own additions!

Animoto- videos automatically created from uploaded photos
Audacity- free audio editing software (download and install)

Aviary - online audio and graphics editing suite (see Myna below)
Awesome Highlighter – highlight and annotate webpages and save/share the highlighted pages

BeFunky – lets you apply photo effects, enhance, edit pictures and photos online.
Blogs- online journals; hosts include blogger, wordpress, edublogs
DoInk – create custom animations
Dushare - online file transfer
Flickr – post, share and gather feedback on photos
Flavorme — create webpage of RSS-based content
Glogster – think virtual, sharable posterboard. Can incorporate text, graphics, videos, sound and hyperlinks. Offers free students accounts that can be managed by teachers.
Google Sketchup – free application (download and install) for creating 3D models
Graphic Organizers – like Inspiration – some are even collaborative!

• BubblUs
• Exploratree
• Gliffy
• Mindmeister
• Mindomo
• Text2MindMap (converts outline to graphic)
• TimeToast (for timeline creation)
• Webspiration
• See also – 9 mind mapping tools

iSpeech – converts digital text to audio file
Jing – free screen capture (still and video) application (download and install)
Kerpoof – create and share artwork, stories and videos.
LiveBinders – virtual collaborative resource binder
Many Eyes – interactive world data sets and maps
Microblogs – users post brief updates for followers.

• Jaiku
• Plurk
• Twitter

Myna - free web-based audio mixer
Paint Go – online drawing/text app – similar to Kid Pix
PhotoPeach – – makes photos from computer, Facebook, Flickr, etc into slideshow with audio
Posterous – create a website by emailing anything to Posterous, no account necessary
Presentation Sites – allow user to post and share slideshow based presentations, some even provide tools for creation and or conversion:

• 280 Slides
• Authorstream
• iSpring – converts power point to flash
• Prezi – non-linear “zooming” presentation tool
• Slideshare
• Slideboom

Productivity Applications – word processing, spreadsheets, presentations, notebooks and tons more:

• Google Applications
• Zoho Applications

Quizlet - notecards, flashcards, study tools, etc.
RSS Feed Managers – keep up with all of your online reading in one place

• Google Reader
• Bloglines

Scratch - create and share animated stories, games, music and art (download and install)
Scribd – collaborative writing space
Scribblar - collaborative whiteboard
Shelfari- maintain and share online”book shelves” with reviews and comments
Sketchcast – records sketching with audio
Skype – talk, chat and video call via the web (download and install)
Social Bookmarking – users post, annotate and share Internet bookmarks

• Mr. Wong
• Diigo- can also highlight specific passages and add sticky notes

Social Networks – online communities

• Facebook
• Xanga
• MySpace
• Edmodo – designed for classroom use
• Ning
• Wetpaint

Storybird – easily create online story books
Stupeflix – linear photo slideshow tool
Stixy - collaborative bulletin board
Symbaloo - collects and organizes online resources in one place
TimeToast – create online timelines

TitanPad – real-time document collaboration; can create doc on the fly or upload existing; no user account necessary
ToonDoo – online cartoon/graphic novel app
Tumblr – blog host which allows users to post anything via browser, cell phone, desktop or email.
Timetoast - create hyperlinked timelines
Video Posting and Commenting:

• NeoK12 - education-based
• YouTube – enough said
• TeacherTube – YouTube for teachers and students.
• Vimeo – high quality video
• DotSub – not only hosts but also translates videos into TONS of languages.

Vocaroo – quickly and easily create and share audio recordings
Voicethread – post text, images, etc. and collect video, audio or text responses.
Voki – create speaking avatars to use on blogs and social networking sites.
Vozme – convert text to MP3
Weblist - create online list of resources including websites, videos, graphics and docs.
Wikis – collaborative workspaces; hosts include wikispaces, pbwiki, zoho.
Xtranormal – create and share animated videos with sound from text
Vuvox collage – combine photos, videos, text and audio into interactive stories
When is Good – group scheduling tool
Yugma – free web conferencing and screen sharing tool – no audio but can use with Skype or conference call

See also – http://teachweb2.wikispaces.com/
http://k12l20sandbox2.wikispaces.com/tools

Tools for Growing your own Textbook – http://www.techlearning.com/blogs/35766

Read the rest of this entry »

We are currently involved in an ideal conflagration of circumstances that has lead to an awesome opportunity for our middle school students. Over the summer a former tech staff member (this totally under-describes what Steve Castellotti did for us while he was on staff but we will leave it at that for now) contacted us to share a side project he is currently working on and asked if we might be interested in doing some beta testing with our students this year. Now, we know a good opportunity when it lands in our laps and we jumped at the offer.

So about two weeks ago our 6th graders had the chance to experience BCI (brain-computer-interface) software live and were able to “drive robots with their minds.” (See a video here.) Steve and Karen Grossman, our middle school science teacher, worked together to plan a lesson integrating the BCI experience with the 6th grade science unit on waves. Using Steve’s Puzzlebox software students were able to “see” their brainwaves and, by increasing their concentration level, cause a Lego robot to move forward. Needless to say the activity was a huge hit – and not just for the students but for the adults involved as well. This initiative is a win-win on so many levels:

• Students get to learn more about the brain.
• They learn more about the role of robotics in the real world in a much more tangible way than Lego robotics ever could teach them.
• They are also gaining an understanding of how software is developed as Steve will return later in the year to give students the opportunity to try out the latest updates to his software.
• There are potential integration points in many curricular areas – science, math, creative writing…
• It is a great lesson in following your passion – just knowing Steve is a lesson in passion-based learning, but again, I digress.
• And as a pure bonus – the theme of this year’s First Lego League competition is biomedical engineering, so members of our team have first-hand knowledge of the content of several of the challenges.

We are thrilled to be a part of this evolving initiative and look forward to seeing it all unfold. I will keep you posted…

GYL is an acronym that some of us use here when revving up for certain events and occasions at school. I often use it when heading down to lunch duty on pizza day! GYL is short for “gird your loins”! I have the distinct impression that this whole year is going to require some loin girding. Now, you should understand that GYL is generally proclaimed with a smile and an air of determination and that is definitely how I am using it in reference to the coming school year. We have some real challenges coming our way in the tech department but they are all very positive and exciting challenges; ones that could (and should) also be seen as opportunities.

Challenge/Opportunity I – Launch a one-to-one netbook program in middle school. This year, each of our students in grades 6-8 will have their own netbook. This initiative is part of the natural evolution of tech integration here. Computers have become so deeply embedded in our instructional environment that we simply could not meet the demand for computers. Obviously, this program presents huge opportunities for teachers and students. On the flip side it will also present some challenges for our three-man tech department! It was an incredibly busy summer for us – increasing wireless access and bandwidth, installing Stoneware for remote access to school resources, configuring 120 netbooks, planning for any and all eventualities and prepping for out-of-box day. The good news is that so far our hard work has paid off as things seem to be working smoothly (every digit on my body is crossed and I am knocking on wood as I type this) and teachers and students alike are very excited about the netbooks.

Challenge/Opportunity II – Revise webpage, set to launch in October. We are in the final laps of a total redesign of the public side of our webpage. Any of you who have tackled this behemoth before know from whence I speak. Capturing the true essence of your school visually and verbally can be quite a task with a number of writers, editors and decision makers. Each time we have accomplished this task it has taken over 18 months and this time has been no exception. However, while at times overwhelming it is also an opportunity to see how newcomers might view your school and a chance to fall in love with it all over again.

Challenge/Opportunity III – Continue learning and sharing. Ok, so this is nothing new but it is often the hardest item to get to on the proverbial “To Do” list. So many other things are competing for our attention and yet, staying abreast of and sharing new ideas, approaches and tools is one of the most exciting and satisfying things we can do as teachers and as tech people. The learning part is a challenge but doable; the sharing part, not so much. I find Twitter, Google Reader and often Facebook to be invaluable professional development tools and generally manage to keep up with them (even if it just is a quick skim) but finding the opportunity to then share what I have learned with others can be very tricky. Between personal interaction, emails and inservice opportunities I manage to share quite a bit. But I always feel like I am only skimming the surface of all the tech-ed awesomeness that is out there. Maybe the key to this challenge is managing expectations (my own expectations that is). Maybe I need to do my best to share the best and brightest and leave the runners up on the back burner.

In any case, no matter how you look at it, this promises to be a rip roaring year – GYL and full steam ahead!

P.S. I actually began writing this post on August 23 and have not had the time to finish it until now. GYLness confirmed!

One of the things I worried about when I launched this blog was whether I would be able to find the time to keep up with it. Obviously this concern has come to pass but such is life! So what, you may ask, has kept me so busy that I could not take some time to update this space? Let’s see, besides the normal hustle and bustle of school life, there’s ramping up for a one-to-one netbook program for the fall, working on the re-design team for our new and improved webpage, teaching two college classes, keeping up with all my other online involvements, my family life and community commitments, “etc., etc. and so forth” (to quote Yul Brenner).

So classes ended for our students last week and while we in the tech department work hard to close out one year and begin the next we are also planning for one of our favorite and most productive weeks of the year – edACCESS. This annual conference, focused on technology in small colleges and independent schools, is by far the most informative and enjoyable professional development experiences of my career. Because it is run on the peer conference model it is ultimately useful for every attendee and because all of the attendees are birds-of-a-feather every interaction is educational (and generally entertaining).

During the week we will take in a keynote address, participate in focus groups, attend a vendor showcase and maybe fit in a few social activities – meanwhile sharing it all with those who cannot attend via video streaming, tweeting and blogging. One of the sessions during the week is the “Demo Showcase” where attendees share some of the cool stuff they are doing at their schools. We decided to share just a few of the ways in which Web 2.0 tools are being used to facilitate communication and collaboration between students and teachers here at RSHC. I have posted the handout for our session here.

Well, there is still much to be done before we head out on Monday so back to the salt mines!

Last week we wrapped up another series of after-school tech sessions for faculty. This series focused on applications and websites that facilitate the manipulation and management of data. And, in one case, the website actually provides access to the data itself.

I started the series with a class on InspireData which is an application produced by the same people who brought us Inspiration. InspireData allows users to very easily create data bases which can then be turned into graphs and charts. Even better, the graphs and charts are animated and can be quickly and easily revised right before your eyes. This is an amazing tool for visual data exploration and analysis!

The second afternoon was spent exploring a website called MapaList. This website allows the user to upload a Google Spreadsheet of locations or specific addresses which are then plotted on a Google Map. You pretty much be as vague or as specific as you like with the addresses as long as field names are close. Another terrific tool for creating a visual representation from a pile of data!

On the third and final week of the series we looked at the website ManyEyes. This amazing tool provides access to a huge collection of data, all uploaded and shared by other users. Once you make your data set selection (or upload your own) you can create a visualization of the data set. Users can create anything from a Wordle type graphic to a wide range of charts and maps. Then, like any good collaborative tool, users are able to post their visualizations and collect feedback from viewers. Talk about web awesomeness!

The handouts from these sessions can be found here:
InspireData(from the User’s Manual)
Mapalist
ManyEyes

Now, what to share in the next series. Hmmmm….