ThingLink

In this sample assignment I have created a ThingLink about William Shakespeare. Within this assignment I have asked to students to “Create an interactive image using ThingLink about an author of your choice. Include links, images, videos, resources, etc. that you consider useful to the research of this author.” In my ThingLink I have included a YouTube video bio, a link to absoluteshakespeare.com, a link to all of Shakespeare’s works, a link to Amazon’s Shakespeare page, a link to a lexicon dictionary, a link to his birthplace page, a mock Shakespeare Twitter, and a link to a list of some of the best Shakespeare movie adaptions.

This tool was very easy to use. You simply find an image and create tags in which you copy and paste the links into. I can really see this tool helping student instruction. It is a great way to provide resources in a new way for the students; and it is also a unique way for students to create an interactive project to present to the class so they can learn off of each other. I would certainly use this tool in my classroom; students will love this interactive method of viewing important resources and to creating a visually appealing display. ThingLink is an excellent use of technology in the classroom as it allows students to view the subject in an attractive and organized fashion. 

My ThingLink

Blabberize

Within this sample I have created a Blabber of Robert Frost explaining upcoming assignment to the students. The assignment is “Create a Blabber by using Blabberize of any of the authors from the pieces you have read this year. Create a speech that you think they would present about the piece you have read.”

Using Blabberize was fairly easy. The only trouble I had was cutting out the mouth to make the image look like it was actually speaking. I had to redo it many times before it started to look right. It was very easy to record my voice off of the microphone on my laptop. Blabberize leads you through an easy step-by-step process to create your Blabber.

I think that this is a great tool to use with students. It is great for introducing topics or allowing the Blabber to explain an idea and speak for you.  It can also be used for an actual assignment, as the students would create their own blabber to present an idea. I can truly see this tool helping with student instruction because it grabs their attention in a unique way. Students will enjoy a new “character” presenting the teacher’s ideas and assignments for them. It is also a good tool for the students to use because they will get a chance to use technology in the classroom and speak from the perspective of their Blabber character. I would definitely use this tool in my classroom; it is a fun and new way to instruct and allow students to integrate technology. 
My Blabberize

Media Literacy

Media Literacy Discussion

I really enjoyed the media literacy discussion that we had today. It was very interesting to see how the media works to persuade and impact us through their advertisements and other various forms of media. This discussion was a great way to display how the media controls the message and the different tools that advertisers use that allow us to have a reaction to that message that they wish to give off.

The Media and Students

I believe that media literacy is something that students need to be taught throughout their education. People (and children especially) are very impressionable and can be easily persuaded. I believe that we must demonstrate how and why the media works to influence our society to do, buy, and believe something. If we are aware of how the media does this, we will then be prepared for what the media presents us and we can strive away from giving into ideas that are simply trying to convince us to side with them. Teaching media literacy will also allow for students to be able to question the media, and choose how they will react to it.

Shocking Ideas

I am very much aware that the media does attempt to persuade us to do, buy, or believe something, however; some concepts in today’s presentation surprised me. For example, I did not know about the Boston Marathon bomber who appeared on the Rolling Stones cover controversy. It is truly shocking that the media would allow him to be perceived as a rock star after the tragedy that he had caused. I also was shocked to hear about the Dove commercials and how they are essentially being hypocrites when considering the media. Dove has made many advertisements that provide the idea that the media gives off a skewed perception of women through their ads, however they are also owned by the same company who supplies AXE commercials that state that if men wear AXE women will chase after them. This shows how the media provides ideas that can be ultimately false or made just to influence you into giving in to the product or idea. Media literacy is a very important topic to discuss and teach all students. 

Google Images

My Digital Story Experience

Christmas with the DeFrenzas

I chose to do my digital story on Christmas traditions with my family. Christmas is a very special time for our family and I believe that it makes us closer. It is a way for us to spend time together and to enjoy our family and the season. I had a lot of fun doing this project. I took pictures off my phone of photos from my family photo album and it really gave me a chance to look through our memories.

iMovie Reflection

I used iMovie to create my digital story. I have used iMovie before, so I was fairly familiar with it. However, I did experience an issue with the narration aspect. Initially, I recorded my voice without any problems. But when I was trying to record another section of narration it would not play. I ended up figuring out that I had record my voice twice and double up the recordings in order for one to play. I am not sure why this happened; however I got through it and succeeded in finishing my assignment with all of the requirements.

Every other feature of iMovie worked smoothly. I simply dragged in my photos, added in my songs, and uploaded the videos from YouTube after I converted them to a MP4. It was also very easy to overlap text into photos and videos. Thus, besides the narration glitch I thought the process was enjoyable and rewarding.

In the Classroom 

I would definitely assign a digital story project to my students. I could use this tool for many assignments in my English class. For example, one could be a digital story explaining a book that they read for a book review. I could assign a group of students a book or allow them to choose their own and tell them create a digital story about it. They would need to include narration, pictures, music, text and any other features that they feel would be helpful to aid in their explanation of the book.  This will be great for the students to use their creativity, explore more in depth about the book, and learn about other books after watching their classmate’s movies. Digital stories are an excellent way to integrate technology into the classroom and to allow students to employ their creativity. 

Christmas with the DeFrenzas

PLN

PLN: Twitter

Within the PLN assignment, I found that Twitter is a great source to use when considering learning more about the field of education. It is a great way to stay up to date on news in education, find helpful links, and connect with teachers or classmates.

Educational Resource

One resource that I found very interesting and a potential tool that I would use in my classroom was the link to “6 creative tips for using QR codes at school”. This resource includes many ideas that would employ QR codes in an effective way. For instance, one of the tips that really stuck out to me was the idea of supplementing homework assignments. This suggests that the teacher can include QR codes into the student’s assignments as a tool that will help them find the answer. For example a math teacher could create QR codes for difficult math problems and attach them to students’ homework. The students can then scan the code and watch a video of the teacher working through the problem step-by-step. Thus, this can be a very effective way to help students when they are working on their assignments at home. This resource that I have discovered via Twitter can be very useful for a teacher who wants to employ technology into the classroom in a fun and interactive way.

Link to resource: 6 tips for using QR codes at school

Posted by Graphite: @Graphite

#Edchat

I participated in an #Edchat by using Twubs and I found it to be very useful. When I first signed on, I saw many retweets of links to educational resources, but not many conversations. I commented on a participant’s retweet of a link entitled, “Updates to Google Classroom are Coming”, however I did not receive a reply. I then waited a few minutes and commented on @Jyoung1219’s retweet of the resource, “Why Your Whole Staff Should Be on Twitter” and got a reply. We began to chat about our thoughts on Twitter in the classroom and he even showed me an example of how he uses Twitter with his students. This proves that #Edchats are a great way to communicate with other educators by collaborating and sharing new ideas that can be used to benefit education. I found the #Edchat to be very helpful for students and teachers as they can impart valuable information to participants and viewers.

*Be sure to check my Tweets to see all of the resources I have posted to #educ353

My Twitter: @KaylaDef

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