5th Grade, Here I Come!

I have been on quite the career journey so far in 2013. When I rang in the New Year I was a 3rd grade teacher, having been there for 6 years and loved every minute of it. An opportunity outside the classroom as an Technology Instructional Coordinator presented itself and by the end of January I took the leap and left the classroom. I enjoyed my adventures in schools all around my district assisting teachers with implementing iPads with instruction. However, the call of the classroom was ringing in my ears and tugging at my heart. I found that as much as I loved working with my fellow teachers as a technology instructional coach, it could not replace the fulfillment and joy I received from working with my own students. Amazingly enough, another opportunity presented itself, this one as a 5th grade teacher. I jumped at the chance and have happily landed back in the classroom. I will continue my journey as an educator integrating technology with instruction. I feel very strongly about providing students access to tools and devices that empower them as learners, creators and collaborators in the classroom. I feel extraordinarily lucky to have had these experiences this year. I am grateful to be going back into the classroom and look forward to sharing new "techy" tips and activities on my blog. 5th grade, here I come! 

Let students' voices be heard!

You can use QR codes to share what your students are saying! 

The website Vocaroo and a QR Code Generator  are all the tools you need to save and share the wonderful things your students are saying. Whether it is reciting a poem, giving a book review, or singing a song - let them be heard! 

Record your voice here

A URL is generated with a variety of options for sharing

Students record their voice at the Vocaroo website. They are given a URL linked to their voice recording. Use that URL to create a QR code. 

You can print out the QR code and attach it to a project, put it on the walls in your school, or email it home to parents. 

Try this one:

Can you think of more ways to use QR codes linked to students' voices? I would love to hear from you! 

Kids love learning vocabulary ... with iMovie!

Vocabulary - one of the necessities of learning new content is learning new vocabulary terms. This can be a mundane task: Write the word, write the definition, memorize, and test. But it does not have to be that way! iMovie on the iPad has many great uses in the classroom. How about giving students the choice to make a movie about their vocabulary words?

A great strategy for using this activity with students is starting with a storyboard. It helps the students make decisions about what images and words they want to use in their movie. It gives them a plan or a script to follow when making the movie. I tell the kids it is just like making a Hollywood movie, you have to plan it out first. Here is a storyboard that I have created to use with iMovie activities in the classroom. You can make it longer or shorter depending on the content and creativity of the students. 

Students fill this in with a simple sketch that represents each of the vocabulary words. They write a short "script" in their own words explaining what each vocabulary word means. They can write the vocabulary word as the "caption". Once the storyboard is completed and a brief conference with the teacher has occurred to go over it, the student can begin the exciting activity of showing their understanding of the vocabulary terms with iMovie. The sketches on the storyboard will help them decide what kinds of pictures to draw in a drawing app on their iPad or search for on the internet and save to their iPad camera roll. They will then insert those pictures into their movie. They will record their own voices reading the script they wrote on the storyboard that goes along with each image.

The act of creating the movie and using the vocabulary in context is a meaningful learning activity. Also being able to share their finished product with others is powerful - students hearing other students examples of making meaning with the vocabulary words helps with understanding. Here are pictures of second grade students in Mrs. Glover's class at Drayton Hall Elementary using iMovie to learn vocabulary. This was a choice at their vocabulary center. 

Completing the storyboard

Completing the storyboard

Making the vocabulary movie in iMovie on the iPad

Making the vocabulary movie in iMovie on the iPad

Now it's your turn. How do you use iMovie with your students? Please comment below if you have any questions or have a fun learning activity you can share that your students do with iPads.

Chop that video!

Have you ever discovered a great YouTube video that you wanted to share with your students? However, the video was 6+ minutes long and the part you wanted your students to see was only 2 minutes. There is a great tool that can "chop" the video and allow you to show only the part you need. No more searching through the video during class to find a particular section. This tool saves valuable instructional time. \
The website is called TubeChop:
http://www.tubechop.com/ 

 

  

Here is how it works:

Find the video you want to use on YouTube. Below is a video about the Rock Cycle. However, I may only want to show the portion that is about sedimentary rocks. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HN1eRMsAluE 

 

 Copy and paste the YouTube URL to the TubeChop website. You can play the video and select start and stop point in the video. 

 

Use the pink slider bar to choose the start and stop points. 

 Once you have chosen the section you want to use, click "Chop It." 

Then, TubeChop gives you several ways to share your video - a URL, embed code, Facebook, Twitter, etc. 

 
There you go! TubeChop allows you to customize the video to use only the portion you need. 

Have you found a great way to edit online videos you use with your students? I would love to hear from you. Share your thoughts in the comment box below. 

Is that really what I sound like?

Using the iTalk app for fluency practice

Whenever I hear my recorded voice, such as in an iMovie I’ve made, I cringe a little and wonder is that really what I sound like? However, with students I’ve found it is quite the opposite. They enjoy hearing recordings of themselves. I can see and hear their enjoyment when they practice fluency using the iPad and an app called iTalk. This is a take-it-to-your-seat literacy activity in my classroom. Here is how it works:

Students choose a text that they are familiar with. The text is usually a leveled book that is on their independent reading level which they have been reading during the week. However, students can choose a book that I have read aloud in class or something they have read with me in a guided-reading group. Students find a quiet place in the classroom for this activity. It can be at their desk or in a quiet spot on the floor somewhere. They open the app called iTalk on their iPad and choose a page from their book. They use the app to record themselves reading a page. They save and name this recording “#1”. Next, they listen to themselves read (using ear buds) and follow along in the text. This is usually a very eye-opening experience for the students. They do enjoy hearing their voices reading the text. However, I can also see that they recognize some of the errors they made as they read. Next, the students record themselves reading that same page again. This time the reading becomes more deliberate. They are consciously working on reading aloud better than they did the first time. This recording is named “#2”. When finished, they listen to the second recording and following along in the text. I can see the satisfaction on the students’ faces as they listen, recognizing the improvements. Students have the option of doing a third recording if they want to.

This activity gives the students choices in what they read/record and how many times they record themselves reading. Because my classroom is 1:1, students can work at their own pace and not worry about someone else waiting for the recording device. The app iTalk holds all of the recordings so students are able to go back and listen to previous recordings. They can even monitor their own fluency progress throughout the school year. This is one of the favorite literacy activities in my classroom. It is a great way to help students improve their reading fluency.