Digital Tools for Teachers

Embed into PowerPoint

2011-11-09T14:34:00.000+10:00

I had to share this bit of information. Yesterday a colleague of mine showed me how you can embed items into 2010 powerpoint.

Go to insert, video and video from website

Copy the embed code from a website such as http://www.voki.com/

Paste in the Code

Select Insert and the embeded content will now appear in the PowerPoint.

For years Language teachers have been asking me how they can save their Vokis without having students sign in. This is a great way for students to present work from the web.

Vokis in particular can be used for students to demonstrate understanding, reflecting, learning words and greetings, asking questions, responding and give instructions.

Add interest with Glass Giant

2011-07-17T09:22:00.002+10:00

There are some fun online sign generators available. A great one to play with is Glass Giant. You simply type in the message you want displayed and the site adds it to an image. I like to use it to create images to use in presentations but you could also make images for work sheets, virtual classrooms or decorate your classroom walls. Here are a few example.

Back to School

Keyboard Mods

Chocolate Bar

Rocket

Plane Banner

Create Talking Images

2011-06-30T11:52:00.001+10:00

This post is an extension of the last post I made where you can attach sounds or speech to shapes. In this activity you can drawing shapes onto an image and then making the shapes transparent. This idea was inspired by acolleaue of mine and her great site on using ICT in the Early Phase .

Ways to apply to learning are:

• Describing the words in a tag cloud

• Describing aspects of an artwork

• Discuss aspects of a photo

• Add music to reflect the mood in an image

• Eye spy photos

To start insert an image into PowerPoint. Draw a shape over an area of the image. This can be done by selecting a shape or freeform shape. Attach the sounds to the shapes as explained in the last post.

Now to make the shapes transparent, right click the shape and select Foramt Shape.

Move the transparency bar to 100%

Select Line Color and select No Line and your shape will now be transparent.

Now you cannot see the shape on top of your image. To test go to slideshow and move your mouse over the screen, when you click you should hear the sound.

Create Interactive Multimodal Content

2011-06-30T09:45:00.001+10:00

Recently I was working with Asian Language teachers who loved learning about creating interactive content by adding speech to shapes in PowerPoint. By combining images, text and sound you are able to create rich multimodal content.

First you create your slides with images or shapes.

Decide what you want to record. Open Audacity and click on the record button and speak to record your voice, click on stop when finished (headset with a microphone is best for this).

Select File – Export as WAV

Go back to your PowerPoint slide, click on the shape you want to attach sound to and select the Insert tab and Action.

If 2003 version right click the shape you want to attach sound to and select Action Setting.

Select Play Sound and scroll down to Other Sound. Select the sound you recorded in Audacity. You can test if it worked by viewing as slideshow. When you move your mouse over the shape and click, you should hear your recording.

This activity can be created by the teacher or students can apply their learning by creating their own.

Here are a few examples of how this process can be used:

• a talking ebook

• a talking map

• a talking timeline

• add sounds to music notes

• add music to images

• add avatars and create talking characters

• add voice to photos

• flash cards

• add voices to speech bubbles in comics

• learning languages

• attach speech to images and students give description

• students identify aspects of diagrams or cycles

Creating Digital Multimodal Texts

2011-06-18T16:54:00.001+10:00

With the introduction of the Australian Curriculum, there is an emphasis on the use of Multimodal Text in English. ICT offers a great range of tools to allow students to create digital multimodal texts, such as comics, animations, digital storytelling, video & audio, ebooks, poster & cover design and game design .

What are multimodal texts?

A text may be defined as multimodal when it combines two or more semiotic systems. There are five semiotic systems in total:

1. Linguistic: comprising aspects such as vocabulary, generic structure and the grammar of oral and written language

2. Visual: comprising aspects such as colour, vectors and viewpoint in still and moving images

3. Audio: comprising aspects such as volume, pitch and rhythm of music and sound effects

4. Gestural: comprising aspects such as movement, speed and stillness in facial expression and body language

5. Spatial: comprising aspects such as proximity, direction, position of layout and organisation of objects in space.

Multimodal texts can be delivered via different media or technologies. They may be live, paper, or digital.

(Bull and Anstey, 2010)

Link to Comic resources

Link to Online Story Makers

Photostory 3, Windows Movie Maker, Audacity, Soungle, Free Sound Project

Link to Online Animation Creators

Blog Post on Animations

Flip Flash Album Free

My eBook

Use software usch as powerpoint, publisher, paint.net or photoshop

Online: Sumopaint or Glogster EDU

Big Huge Labs: Magzine Cover Generator, Motivator Poster, Movie Poster

Scratch, Game Maker, Alice, Game Salad (Mac), Game Mechanic, Kodu,

Can create using powerpoint, online resources: News Map, Many Eyes, Gapminder, Periodic table of Visualisation Methods, Information is Beautiful

Anstey, M. & Bull, G. (2010) Helping teachers to explore multimodal texts. Curriculum Leadership, 8 (16)

Create an eBook using free software

2011-06-18T16:41:00.000+10:00

A colleague of mine is famous for his fabulous workshops where he shows teachers how to create ebooks using Flip Flash Album free. So I thought I would share some information about this application. It is a free software you can download. Students can add images, text and flash animations to create an interesting ebook. This is great for storytelling, presenting a research task, the alphabet, learning a language, instructional manual, art portfolio, digital photo album, etc. The album can be exported as a flash file.

You can choose the size and template. Add an image one at a time or select a folder of images.

Select one of the pages and add text and flash animation

Comix - Free Online Comic Creator

2011-06-08T11:15:00.000+10:00

I love looking for new ways students can create comics. A colleague of mine passed on a link to me called Comix. It is described as a free preschool online game. It is very easy to use with simple click and drag on the page functions.

The site offers a range of images students can choose from. In the Draw section ,there are text options with speech bubbles or text box. You easily change the size of the cell and add more. Students can also draw and upload their own images. The great thing about this site is you don’t need to register and you can save the image as a jpeg when click on Publish. (It asks for author's name but you don't need to fill it out to save)

Students can use this site for many purposes:

Creating a multimodal text
As inspiration for a story
To interpret a story
Practice spelling words
Create a sequence
Create Big, Bigger, Biggest images
A poster

Using Animations to Apply Knowledge

2011-05-19T20:04:00.000+10:00

Creating animations is a great way for students to apply their knowledge and demonstrate understanding. It also allows students to develop problem solving and decision making skills while being creative and having fun. I have included a few links to sites to give ideas and a table to show how animations can be used across subject areas.

I Create to Educate

Great student sample I particularly like to animated diagram of the heart.

Sam Animation

Klutz: great ideas for stop motion animation

Animate Clay

RollerMache

Animation for education

Using Animations Across Subject Areas

English

Demonstrate knowledge of the genre and audience

Create a Book trailer as an alternative to a book report

Interpret myths and legends

Interpret a poem or nursery rhyme through animation

Create a persuasive animation by focusing on environmental issues

Bring characters from a novel or play to life by adding them to an animation

Write a story and adapt to an animation

Using foam letters to spell words

Using magnetic words to create sentences

Use new vocabulary words in context

Create an advertisement

Maths

Demonstrate understanding of fractions and percentages

Display number equations

Create shapes

Demonstrate understanding of percentages

Demonstrate understanding of time

Create animated graphs

Use lego blocks for counting

Science

Demonstrate phases of the moon

Life Cycles

Solids, liquids and gases

Forms of energy

create a sun safe animation

Growth of a plant

Circulatory system

Digestive system

Demonstrate a volcanic eruption or earthquake

Time-lapse video of plant growing, weather changing and melting

Show understanding of laws of physics

Show the position and movement of planets in our solar system

Demonstrate understanding of magnets

SOSE

Indigenous dreamtime stories

Re-enact events in history

Environmental sustainability

Travel around a map

Natural Disasters

Languages Stroke order of script writing

Characters speaking in the target language

Create an animation depicting a culture

Art

Demonstrate colour theory

Bring an art work to life

Demonstrate understanding of the elements and principle of design

Document the creation of an artwork from beginning to end

Create animation exploring art movements e.g. Surrealism

Music

Create music tracks for animations

Demonstrate how to write music

Demonstrate music theory

Home Economics

Demonstrate procedures and safety

Create the illusion that a meal made itself by taking images during the preparing and cooking process.

Nutrition

The Changing World - Show World

2011-04-19T16:52:00.001+10:00

There are many sites now which convert data into visual forms. This site called SHOW world displays a range of data in a visual form using the map of the world. Instead of land mass, the size of each country will represent the data for that subject. This can be the stimulus for class discussions or research activities.

Categories include:

People: Demographics, Causes of Death, Education, Health, Religion

Planet: Animal Resources, Crop Resources, Energy, Environment, Metals and Minerals, Natural Disasters

Business: Economy, Global Brands, Industry, Technology, Transport

Politics: Government, Law and Order, Migration, War & Conflict, Aid

Living: Food & Dining, Travel, Sports, Media

http://show.mappingworlds.com/world/

Online Comics and Graphic Novels

2011-04-18T20:03:00.000+10:00

Here is a list of Online Graphic Novels and Comics. They vary from being read online or download as a pdf. With these comics you can use them for comprehension activities, use them as stimulus to give students ideas when they are making their own, you can also look at characters, setting and the plot of the comic.

http://wormworldsaga.com/

The WormWorld Saga is an Online Comic and is available in a range of languages. This makes it a great tool for learning laguages.

http://dckids.kidswb.com/

DC Kids offers a range of comics which are free to download.

http://www.thedreamlandchronicles.com/

The Dream Chronicles is an online Graphic Novel.

http://www.andyrunton.com/owly/

This site offers a range of comics which are free to download. they are great for beginning readers andto use for visual literacy.

http://www.toon-books.com/rdr_one.php

This site offers a range of online comics for early Phase students. They are also avaliable in English, French, Spanish, Russian and Chinese.

http://comics.com/

This site offers a range of Online Comics

This site provides free sample downloads of classics which have been converted into Graphic Novels such as Romeo and Juliet, Jane Eyre, A Christmas Carol and many more. The site also provides teacher resources and comics with no text so students can interpret the images and add their own text.

http://anthropology.si.edu/writteninbone/comic/

This site is a Forensic Science Mystery better suited for older students.

http://www.howtoons.com/

Free 'How to' downloadable comics

http://cindispace.utdallas.edu/education/cindi_comic.html

Free Download

http://www.sciencecomics.uwe.ac.uk/index.php

Online Science Comics

http://www.grammarmancomic.com/twilight.html

Free Download comics on Biographies of the Twilight actors.

http://www.grammarmancomic.com/grammarcom.html

http://www.grammarmancomic.com/marvelidioms.html

http://www.kinsa.net/widgetFiles/file/Web%20of%20Deception.pdf

Free Download about internet safety

http://www.nsteens.org/Comics/HowMuchIsTooMuch

Online comic about internet safety

http://www.adrianbruce.com/machinima/macbeth/macbeth.htm

This link shows an adaptation of Hamlet created using a game similar to Machinima by Adrian Bruce.

http://www2.scholastic.com/content/collateral_resources/pdf/g/Scholastic_GraphixPages01.pdf

This is a great resource to about Graphic Novels.

Online Comic Creators Glog

2011-04-06T14:31:00.001+10:00

I have had another play with glogster and created this Virtual poster. Move your mouse over the words and click to go to the link.

Create Fun Interactives using Hyperlinks in PowerPoint

2011-04-06T14:24:00.000+10:00

Many use hyperlinks to direct people to information such as websites by highlighting text. In PowerPoint you can add links to shapes by creating an invisible hyperlink.

This can be done by drawing a shape, selecting it and then finding the Action Button (2003 version will find it under Slideshow; later versions will find it under Insert). You then select which slide you want to link to the shape. Think of it as the first slide as the main page and the other slides are hidden behind it. This process adds more interactivity to PowerPoint and is a useful tool for Interactive White Boards.

There are many ways to use this process:

Create a Non-Linear slide: Create a Mindmap or picture and link the slides, rather than sequential

Create a Quiz or Game: You can create a quiz for students or they could make their own. Create a multiple choice and when the students select the correct answer they see a picture and sound.

Choose your own adventure: Add interest to story writing by asking students to write different alternatives to their story, the reader can choose the different options.

Create an Interactive Map: Take a screenshot of a map, add a shape and place it on the map. Link the shape to a slide with information about the place.

Create Flash cards: when learning words or another language. Make a box with a word and link it to a slide with a matching picture. Make a box with Japanese script and link it to the sound.

This process can really be adapted to suit any subject area

Ideas for Stop Motion Animation

2011-04-06T14:12:00.000+10:00

Creating Stop Motion Animation can be a great way for students to engage in learning content of any subject area. Stop Motion can be created in different ways. It can be divided into using 2D or 3D materials.

2D:

• Whiteboard and whiteboard marker

• Post it notes

• Cut outs, print our characters and make body parts moveable

• Foams letters or magnetic letters (Great for title sequence to add some interest)

• Roll out modelling clay and use cookie cutters

3D:

• Modelling clay (Make shapes or characters)

• Toys eg. Legos, action figures

• Objects eg. Stationery, cutlery, buttons, paddle pop sticks

• Create a set out of a box.

• Document change: Set the camera to take photos in intervals and document change eg. The sky, a plant growing etc.

Students have fabulous ideas and the best intentions, unfortunately their abilities can restrict the production of these ideas. Modelling clay characters can be difficult. I found these great people and bird add on pieces to push into clay. They make fabulous creatures without needing any modelling skills (and they are fun to make).

Here are some scaffolding activities I use as an introduction to build confidence:

• With a whiteboard, create the illusion of writing your name with your finger.

• Make a piece of paper fold up and then unfold by itself. (Done by reversing slides)

• Make buttons follow each other in a line

Here are some ideas for animations:

• Convert a fairytale, fable or nursery rhyme.

• Adapt a movie story line

• Create a Music Film clip

• Convey a message ‘Save the Environment'

• Re-write history

• Create characters from a novel students are reading

Here are a few You Tube videos I like to show students to give provide inspiration:

The Animals Save the Planet - Energy Efficient Penguin

(There are many others in this series)

Clay Play

There was a Time

Deadline - Post it Stop Motion

Ping Pong Ball Stop Motion

Legos-Grease

Wimp Yourself - Avatar Maker

2011-04-06T12:55:00.000+10:00

Here is another fun avatar maker where students can create their own characters which they can then make a story or add them into a comic.

http://www.wimpyourself.com/

Using Powerpoint to Remove Backgrounds

2011-04-06T12:43:00.003+10:00

I love Powerpoint (yes you heard right). Once you start playing with the page dimensions it is amazing what you can come up with. I use it mainly now for designing and making comics rather than presentations. One great feature with I love on the 2010 PowerPoint is the Remove Background option. When you insert an image and select Picture Tools you will see this tool bar.

Select Remove Background. The background will appear purple. Just move the selected area until the image you want to keep has no purple on it.

When you are happy with your selection, click on Keep Changes and …..

By cropping an image or yourself out of a photo it allows you to create some great learning activities which can apply to a range of contexts such as,

Paste face on to animals, creatures or avatars
Go on a Virtual field trip: place yourself into images from around the world
Time travel: place yourself into images from history
Personalise a story: students can place themselves into a story

Experiment with scale: make an object look larger or smaller than real life by placing it next to another object. Here is an example from http://www.worth1000.com/

Creature Creator - Spore 2D

2011-04-06T12:35:00.000+10:00

Here is a fun creature creator, Spore 2D http://www.spore2d.com/

It is derived from the Spore game but is simply the creature creator and easy to use. Students can create a creature of their choice. This can be used as stimulus for a writing task, comics, art work or students could decide the habitat in which it would live.

You can save your final creature to a file on your computer as a .png file.

Conversations Between Characters

2011-04-06T12:28:00.000+10:00

Here is an example of a homework assignment on investigating the important aspects of friendship. First the characters were made using a WeeMee avatar creator app on my iPad you could use online avatar makers. Then you can remove the background of the characters this can be done in 2010 PowerPoint, paint.net or photoshop. Using PowerPoint, you can then selected the background setting and then work on the dialogue. here is the finished result.

The idea of having two characters having a conversation means the characters can be talking about any topic such as reflecting, giving information, revison, speaking in another language, using spelling words etc.

Creating Characters for Comics

2011-04-06T12:19:00.001+10:00

Yesterday I ran a Digital Graphic novel workshop for teachers which lasted all day. We looked at a range of learning activities using comics to engage students in learning. One activity was to provide a comic with empty speech bubbles and the students add in the speech. This allows students to interpret the image and then decide on the appropriate text for the comic.

I have added these two examples here to show how you can create characters for comics by taking images One is simply using dinosaur toys and removing the background and replacing it with a desert scene. The second was created using a ball of modelling clay and pushing in features to create the characters. I have left the bubbles empty in case you want to have a play and add in the speech. These characters could also be used for Stop Motion Animation.

Travel Back in Time with Interactive Timelines

2011-02-06T17:57:00.002+10:00

One of the things I like about the internet, is it allows resources to become interactive. There are many interactive timelines which are available now, which provide an engaging way to look at history. Teachers can use them on Interactive whiteboards and they can cater for a range of subject areas. Students can explore on their own, find information for a research task or search for items similar to a scavenger hunt.

Conflict History

One in particular is called Conflict History. This site provides a timeline of the conflicts around the world throughout history. The site also provides a map of the world linking the countries involved in the conflict. There is information provided on each conflict provided by Wikipedia. This is a great resource for History and Geography. The scary thing is to see how many conflicts are documented in the 2000s.

British Library Interactive Timeline

Here is another great interactive timeline which can be used across many subject areas such as Ancient and Modern History, English, Science, Art and Music. The site is called the British Library interactive timeline. It allows you to explore collection items chronologically, from medieval times to the present day.

It includes a diverse range of resources divided into the following categories:

Politics, power and rebellion
Literature, Music and Entertainment
Everyday
Sacred texts
Medicine, Science and Technology

Once you have chosen the category and the item you can explore further by viewing the image, video or transcript. You can print or download the information as a pdf file.

Here are a few Interactive timelines more worth looking at:

British History

NASA Historical Timeline

Sea Monsters a Prehistoric Adventure

Benjamin Franklin’s Interactive Timeline

Timeline of Google

Australian Screen interactive Timeline

Warhol Interactive Timeline

This site gives information about Andy Warhol and the major events in the world during the 1920s – 1960s.

Interactive Timelines for Art History

Smart History

Art History

Timeline of European Painters

Clay Yourself

2011-01-22T11:16:00.002+10:00

There are many sites which provide you with tools to create your own character or avatar. These sites can be used in many ways such as:

• Make own avatar and use in a personal profile listing hobbies, interest and goals.

• Students can use an avatar instead of a photo when posting on the web to protect privacy.

• Teachers could make on of themselves.

• Make own avatar with background and accessories which represent their interests. The students can explain what the visual images represent, eg. A guitar because they love to listen to music.

• Students can divide into pairs and make avatars of each other.

• Students can make their own avatars, print them out and collect them. Shuffle and distribute them out. Students match the avatar to the person who made it.(Great ice breaker activity)

• Use as a character in a game or animation such as flash or scratch.

• Print out the character and pin the joints to make it movable. This could be used as a puppet or could be brought to life in a stop motion animation.

• Make a 3-D interpretation of the character in clay or construction materials

• Re-create characters from a book, film or play.

• Print out avatars with the student’s name underneath and use them to decorate and personalize the classroom.

• Make characters and write a story about them.

• Use them to make comics by adding speech bubbles

• Add interest to worksheets or virtual classrooms

• Design a character and convert the image into an artwork. It could be used in a screen printing activity, painting or drawing.

• Or just to have some FUN!

A new site I have come across on twitter thanks to @neslidrmsgl it is called http://www.clayyourself.com/ . The great thing about this site is it has a 3D look as though you are made from clay. You can save your final character; the site also has a name generator and a script writer for a story where you fill in the missing words. This is a fun site to have a play with.

For more Avatar making sites go to this slideshare link.

Shape Collage

2011-01-22T10:47:00.000+10:00

An interesting way to present images is in a collage. A free download software is http://www.shapecollage.com/ . This program will allow you to select your images and the shape you would like them arranged in. You can select shapes, letters or even words. There are many ways to use this:

• Do a class collage of images of students in your class into the shape your class name eg. 3B

• Create the alphabet using images starting with that letter

• Create your name using images representing you

• Display images relating to themes to stimulate ideas and discussion

Simply drag your images into the photo area and select your shape.

Here are some examples:

D for Dinosaurs

Benefits of Blogs for Teachers

2011-01-08T21:59:00.002+10:00

There are many teachers who regularly read and write blogs, however, there are many who do not. I thought I would break down the benefits of both reading and writing blogs to encourage more teachers to share.

Writing your first blog can be daunting, here are some tips to get started:

Start by reading a few blogs on topics which interest you
Make comments on the blogs to build your confidence.
Start to plan your first blog post. Do this in a document first as you plan and process your ideas.

Some ideas:

Something you are doing in class
An event
Useful resource or website you have found and like
A unit of work which was successful
An event at your school
Something you have recently learnt

Here is my interpretation of the benefits of blogs for teachers.

Word Cloud Christmas Card Ideas

2010-12-15T19:23:00.001+10:00

Being the festive season and if you are like me haven’t organised Christmas cards yet. Here is a quick and fun way you can make them. It also gives you the chance to try out a few websites at the same time.

This example is made using the lyrics from Jingle Bells which I found by searching using Google. I then used http://www.wordle.net/ and pasted in the lyrics.

Just a few handy tips, if you you want two words to stay together such as ice cream use the ~. Eg. Ice~cream. If you want to remove a word from the wordle you can right click the word to remove it.

To take this idea a step further you can use http://www.tagxedo.com/ . This site allows you to make word clouds into a shape. Here I used Jingle Bells lyrics into a heart shape and O Christmas Tree into the shape of a Christmas tree.

Next, to add some more Christmas cheer you can use http://www.picnik.com/ . This site allows you to edit and add to your images. It offers some great text, graphics and frames for Christmas. Once you have finished you can save your final image straight to your computer. Here are my finished products.

You could print out your images and paste them onto blank cards or laminate them and place a magnet on the back to stick it onto the fridge. Of course this process can be adapted into any other theme or activity.

Creating Characters

2010-07-06T16:44:00.000+10:00

I love using online tools and apps which allow students to customise and develop their creativity. There are many avatar makers and creature creators available. I have updated this presentation to include a few new ones I have found. I have also included a few ideas on how to use them in the classroom.

Creating Characters

View more presentations from S. Hendy.

Problem Solving Games

2010-06-30T20:29:00.004+10:00

It is no secret that I am an advocate for using games as a tool for learning. Games have the power to engage students and many offer great learning potential. They allow students to explore, be creative, learn content, develop literacy and numeracy skills, improve memory retention, develop problem solving and decision making skills and all while having fun. Lately, I have noticed a range of problem solving games which are becoming popular. These games offer great learning potential.

Often they relate to physics theories and require problem solving and decision making skills. They also teach students to persevere and to learn by trial and error. The game itself can be the class activity or it can be used as a stimulus for other activities by engaging the students into the subject or topic. Students can even document their journey through a game by creating a blog or journal by writing, video, pod cast and images.

The first game I have found interesting is World of Goo created by 2DBoy. In this game you are given a number of blobs of goo which connect to each other the aim is to construct a structure which reaches the pipe to carry the goo. As you play the game you work through levels of difficulty. This is not a free game, you can download a trial from or purchase it from a games store.

Fo more information go to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_of_Goo

Along similar lines to the World of Goo is Huje Tower. This is a free online game and is also available as an apple app as both lite and paid version. In this game you construct a structure which needs to reach a given point. It also offers a range of levels to work through and provides hints.

Fantastic Contraption is another problem solving game which is available online and as an apple app. You are given challenges to construct contraptions using wheels and rods.

Another construction game which is available is Soup Toys, this game has been mentioned previously in this blog.

Tiki Towers

Tiki Towers is a problem solving game which offers fun for students. This is avalible as an apple app. You need to build a structure out of bamboo to help the monkeys collect the bananas and get to the other side. You are only given a number of bamboo to work with each time. As you play you unlock more islands and levels.

A site which has many more problem solving games is http://www.physicsgames.net/

There are also a range of games available which provide challenge which you solve by drawing in the solution. An example of this is Crayon Physics. Another game which is very similar is Magic Pen.

A game available on http://www.friv.com/ is Roller Coaster Creator. The challenge is to draw a roller coaster line from one point to another and to collect the coins on the way. It offers different levels of difficulty and you add different items to the construction.

There are also many drawing games available in http://www.linerider.com/

In these games you draw a line which becomes a track for a vehicle. You then press play when you have completed the track. It is also availabe as an app.

Talking Avatar Videos

2010-06-17T19:55:00.001+10:00

I know this is not a new device and many people use it but I thought I would share some ideas anyway. The Logitech webcam offers a great function.

You can choose from a range of avatars and the camera calibrates to your face. This makes the avatar move with you, the eyes blink when you blink and the mouth moves as you speak. The webcam has a built in microphone allowing you to film and record a voice at the same time. Here are a few of the avatar options.

It is very easy to use, simply select the avatar and sit in front of the webcam, you need a well lit and quiet area. I encourage students to practice first and then record. Students may need to do a few takes. The video saves to the computer. Using this device is fun to use and encourages students to practice their speaking skills. It is also useful because you don't need a classroom of computers. All you need is access to one lap top or a computer and one web cam, students can take turns using it.

Here are a few ideas on how to use it in the classroom

Student use:

Reflection of a task
Reflection of an excursion or camp
Research task
Book review
Use in a poetry unit, write and recite a poem about one of the avatars
An alternative to an oral presentation for students who are not comfortable
Read a book to share with younger year levels
Read out a story they have written
Speak as though they are a character from a story eg. Gingerbread man
Use to practice speaking languages other than English
Add to a PowerPoint presentation
Add to a blog or Glog
Use as an introduction to a movie or animation students are making

Teacher use:

Project on a screen or IWB at the beginning of the lesson to gain students attention
Use to give instructions
Give hints to a new unit of work
Add to a virtual classroom
Add to PowerPoint presentation
Use at a staff meeting
Use at a Subject selection night

World of Zoo

2010-06-13T19:25:00.001+10:00

http://www.worldofzoo.com/

I came across this game while wandering a computer games store, it is called World of Zoo. I love Zoo Tycoon and this game seemed to have a few similarities. World of Zoo is much easier to play, making it great for younger students. The graphics are more cartoon looking rather than the realistic approach of Zoo Tycoon 2. This also makes the game suitable for younger students. This is a PC game you can purchase, it also comes in Nintendo DS and Wii formats.

As you play the game you can unlock items and more animals. You can customise the animals and change their patterns and colours. Students also earn coins as they look after the animals and participate in challenges. They can then buy items with their money. The appropriate environment and food are provided so students don’t need to decide what is suitable for the animal. The game provides information about the animals. Students can also write stories about their animals.

The feature which I find interesting is the built in camera. You can take photos in the game and they can be exported to your computer. So students can interact with the animals and then take photos. It is fun trying to get that perfect photo as the animals move around. These photos could be used for a project, art activity, research task or used to create a comic.

This game is great to use with primary school aged students. It could be integrated into activities about animals, habitats, using money, numeracy, literacy and writing stories. The game can inspire many art activities such as painting or drawing from a photo students have taken in the game, create an animal mask, look at the colours and patterns on the animals and create a design, create puppets of animals or totem poles.

I have created a comic example, I used the giraffe images I took from the game and created the comic using Comic Life.

Furbles

2010-06-07T18:55:00.001+10:00

This is a great site I heard about at the Blast Conference I recently presented at. It is called Furbles, the site offers demo versions to work with. It is a great way to engage young students in maths activities by looking at shapes, numbers and colours. Students can also see the relationship between data and visual interpretations such as bar graphs, tables and pie charts. These would be great activities to use on an Interactive Whiteboard.

You select the number of furbles you want, the colours, shapes and number of eyes.

The eyes move as you move your mouse around, students love this!

If you select the bar graph option along the bottom bar, you can select the category you wish to look at in bar graph form. Here is an example of one using colour. The furbles move themselves into place to create a bar graph.

The same happens when you select the table format or the pie chart.

If you select the shoe icon, students can move the furbles themselves to form different groups according to the colour, shape or eyes. This would be a great interactive whiteboard activity.

Tap into the World of Comics: Primary School Version

2010-06-06T14:34:00.000+10:00

I recently presented my 'Tap into the World of Comics' at the 2010 Blast! Interactive Learning Conference for Middle and Upper Primary Educators at the ICT Learning Innovation Centre (Which was a fabulous event by the way!). I realised I had to make my presentation a little more 'Primary school friendly' and more appropriate for presentation mode rather than print mode.

Here is what I came up with. I also created a handout for teachers to jot down notes during the presentation and demonstrated another use of comics.

Tap into the World of Comics Primary School version

View more presentations from S. Hendy.

Tap into the world of comics worksheet

View more presentations from S. Hendy.

Photo! 3D Screensaver

2010-05-09T16:58:00.002+10:00

This is a fun tool I stumbled upon. I have been thinking about how to create a virtual art gallery, so I did some research and came across this cool application.

I found it at http://pho.to/p3d-platform/ it is a site where you can edit your photos online, however, it also provides some great ways to present your photos.

It offers free downloads to create Photo! 3D Album, 3D Screensaver and photo web album. It creates a realistic 3D world which displays images. You move around the environment automatically and view the different images.

Create presentations online by creating a widget. Choose the template from slideshow, 3D album or a 3D gallery. You can upload your own images, add images from sites or flickr. The site creates the widget and provides you with an embed code.

The screensaver in particular, is a great way for students to display their images, use at the end of a school year, at a subject selection evening or parent/teacher event to showcase the school events. There are many environments to choose from. It is also fun to use at home and display your family photos.

Xtranormal

2010-04-15T19:19:00.001+10:00

I have been creating resources for teachers to show how to use different sites. This is a fun one to use called www.xtranormal.com/ . I have been having a play, so I thought I would share.

Create a creature

2010-04-09T22:48:00.000+10:00

I love sites which provide options to create, here is another scholastic game where you can create a creature. It can be used for writing or art activities.

http://www.scholastic.com/underlandchronicles/creaturecreator.htm

Scholastic Writing Games

2010-04-09T22:34:00.000+10:00

It appears I have come across a theme of digital stories lately. I was looking at the scholastic site and came across some great writing games I thought I would share. The games are all related to books.

http://www.scholastic.com/dogslife/createtale.htm

Students can create a scene using the characters provided.

Space is then provided to describe what is happening in the scene. Students can also use prompts provided.

http://www.scholastic.com/esperanza/storybuilder.htm

Decide on a scene.

Write a story.

http://www.scholastic.com/inkheart/editorial/index.htm

This game helps students plan to write an editorial and displays the components needed.

http://www.scholastic.com/charlottesweb/comic/index.htm

Make a Charlotte's Web Comic

The scenes, characters, objects and speech bubbles are provided.

There are also options to create other comics based on:

http://www.scholastic.com/amulet/makeyourown/

http://www.scholastic.com/bone/comic_maker.htm

http://www.scholastic.com/goosebumpsgraphix/makeyourown/index.htm

http://www.scholastic.com/smile/makeyourown/index.htm

Students can create stories relating to the novels or create their own versions.

Character Scrapbook

2010-04-09T21:52:00.000+10:00

This site I came across on Twitter from @storytellin . It is presented as a scrapbook and allows students to analyse the characters in books.

http://teacher.scholastic.com/activities/scrapbook/

Students type in the name of the book and one of the characters. There is an option to create the look of the character and then write about them. There are several pages provided for students to describe the character.

The site ask students to respond to the following:

Ten things I know about ......

Ten words that describe .....

Ten details about .......'s appearance

Ten facts about ........'s personality

Ten challenges .......... face

Ten accomplishments .......... achieved

The site also provides resources for teachers and printables.

http://www2.scholastic.com/browse/article.jsp?id=3748285

This is a great way to reinforce and extend students' knowledge of a book they have read. It could also be used for students to plan their own story and create their own character.

Collection of Online Story Makers

2010-04-09T09:30:00.001+10:00

I have already shared these sites in the last post using Live Binders. I have to say, I still love the visual and interactive aspect of Glogster so I made one using the same collection of sites.

Digital Story Resources

2010-04-08T20:34:00.002+10:00

Digital Story Resources

Online Animation Creators

2010-04-06T21:34:00.002+10:00

WordSift

2010-04-05T09:50:00.001+10:00

This is an interesting site I came across. It reminds me of Wordle, where a tag cloud is created from text which you paste in. However, this site then provides research options for the popular words in the text. Students can select words and research them further.

This is a great way to dissect a piece of text or to analyse their own work and look for words they commonly use.

The site also provides Word Lists relating to different subject areas.

Prezi: Playing to Learn Math

2010-04-04T22:41:00.000+10:00

I came across this Prezi by Maria Andersen. I love using games to stimulate learning, this presentation explains it well.

Playing to Learn Math? on Prezi

Between the Lions

2010-04-04T22:33:00.000+10:00

Here is another great PBS site derived from a TV show, it is called Between the Lions.

http://pbskids.org/lions/

The site is full of literacy games and stories. It offers great interactive activities for beginning readers. I love the motto, 'Get Wild about Reading'. Students will love exploring this site and meeting new characters.

Sid the Science Kid

2010-04-02T16:52:00.001+10:00

I mentioned 'Sid the Science Kid' in the last post but I thought I would explore it further. It is a great site for Prep and Grade 1 students. I will run through a few activities students can interact with. Each activity has the potential to be incorporated into other classroom tasks.

http://pbskids.org/sid/

There are two ways to navigate around the site, one is to visit places such as a playground, classroom or kitchen. The second is to click on the icons on the top right.

The Penguin provides all the games available, the TV provides videos to watch, the book provides printable activities and the collection jar collects items you can find.

Visit the kitchen and explore different areas.

Click on the fridge and learn about nutrition and food groups. Students can select food to match each food group. This is a great way to learn about nutrition, a balanced diet and how to classify.

This activity could be used in a health lesson or a science lesson. Students could write down their favourite foods and draw them.

Next you can click on Sid's Father who is standing in the kitchen. Here students can learn about body parts. The Father moves a body part and names it and students can click on the same body part on Sid. Each time a body part is added helping students to develop memory skills. This could be a fun activity to do with students in groups. Students could stand in a circle and each one adds a body part to move.

In the kitchen is a Question Box, where students can write a question. This is a great activity for students to learn to form questions when they want to know about something. You could even start your own question box in the classroom.

Next you can visit a classroom called the Fab Lab.

Click on the First Aid box and it discusses the use of vaccines to fight against viruses. Students can click on an antibody to fight a virus.

Click on the luch box and watch the food decay over days. Students can also use a magnifying glass to look closer.

Click on the drawing on the easel and students are introduced to the five senses. Students are asked a question and then select the correct item.

Click on the chart and learn about animal sounds. Students can also learn the names of animals in Spanish.

Click on the Journals and look at drawings of objects and activities. Students can learn about how to observe and record events and how to classify and group.

Next you can visit the Playground.

Click on the girl under the bird nest and learn about levers and balance.

Click on the girl by the log and students need to guide the bugs into the log by clicking on them. This develops skills in judgement, problem solving and decision making.

Click on Sid and make tunes by clicking on objects.

Students could walk around the room or outside and find their own objects they can use to make noises.

Click on the boy on the right and students can learn about the four seasons. They can select appropriate clothing for each season.

All of these activities could lead into to further exploration such as group discussion, art activities or writing projects.

More Fun Interactive Sites for Kids

2010-03-30T21:01:00.001+10:00

Here are a few more sites which are sure to keep students busy and happy!

http://www.funbrain.com/brain/SweepsBrain/sweepsbrain.html

This is a great interactive site where students can explore and engage in learning by clicking on the characters.

Little Einsteins

http://tv.disney.go.com/playhouse/littleeinsteins/index.html

This site is based on the TV show of the same name. The site offers a range of activities involving art and music.

Painting Game

http://www.bbc.co.uk/cbeebies/games/#/lb/somethingspecial/paintinggame

This is a fun game where you add to a story by drawing characters and story settings.

Number Jacks

http://www.bbc.co.uk/cbeebies/numberjacks/games/

This is a site based on the TV show about numbers. It provides games which help the development of numeracy skills.

Sid the Science Kid

http://pbskids.org/sid/

This site provides many opportunities to explore.

Students can visit different rooms and engage in different science oriented activities.

Fun Interactive Sites for Kids

2010-03-29T21:14:00.004+10:00

I have to admit, I didn't find these sites on my own. I sat down with my kids and they showed me the sites they love to play on http://www.kidoz.net/ . Kido'z is a web browser for children which only makes appropriate sites, games and videos available. It is also easy for children to navigate around.

The Wot Wots

One of the sites they showed me was http://wotwots.com/americas/games/

An interesting activity which created a lot of laughter was an Animal Creator. You go to the drawing board and choose the activity. Select a colour and then select from different animals for different body parts and a cartoon version is drawn. You can save the image and then go to the scrapbook and print the image. This can lead into some fun art projects and then write a description or story about the creature.

Rainbow Magic

The next site they showed me was http://www.rainbowmagiconline.com/

This is a popular chapter book series about fairies named after colours.

A fun activity the site provides is 'Create your own fairy' .

Choose within a colour theme or choose any colour under the rainbow.

Once you have created your fairy, you can write a name and then write a description of the fairy.

This could then lead into a writing activity where students can create their own story based on their fairy.

Word World

The next two sites are based on the TV show Word World. A great show where all objects are represented with the word in the shape of the object. The first site provides an ebook which can be read, printed or emailed.

http://www.wordworld.com/ebook1/index.html

The next site is more interactive. You can follow the challenges and spell the words of objects. You can also visit the different characters in the show and click on the 'Word Things'. The words are then spelt out.

This is a fun way for students to learn the meaning and spelling of words. The concept of drawing words to look like the object can be a great art activity while learning the spelling of words.

Berenstain Bears

The next site we came across was http://pbskids.org/berenstainbears/ .

You can create your own story by filling in spaces and selecting from provided options. This would be a great activity for younger students. They can read the finished story or print it out.

Students could then share their stories and draw pictures.

Wumpa's World

This next site is a very popular one at home, mainly because it offers many options and children can explore and navigate through activities.

http://www.wumpasworld.com/flash.html?langue=e

Click on the different characters and students can engage in a range of activities such as searching, sorting, creative games, storytelling and many more.

What is Creativity?

2010-03-26T17:17:00.001+10:00

As an art teacher, I deal with the concept of 'creativity' everyday. Now the word 'creativity' is used across the curriculum. As educators, we are encouraged to promote the development of creativity in our students. This raises the question, What is Creativity?

I decided to break it down and I came to my own conclusion. I see creativity as a process. There is a beginning, which is the task or problem and the end is an original creation or result. The process in the middle is creativity. This process incorporates a range of different skills. When you look at these skills it soon becomes apparent why creativity is so important. This process contributes to the development of learning skills.

Digital technology has created new methods and strategies which assist students and teachers to develop their creativity and provide engaging learning environments.

Here is a visual representation I have made of my perception of creativity.

The Process of Creativity

Meez

2010-03-25T11:42:00.002+10:00

I asked my students to create an avatar of themselves. I noticed that many were drawn to http://www.meez.com/home.dm . I have created one which is animated. You can create one without registering and save using screen capture. It was fun to play and provides many options. It is more suitable for teenagers.

A Prezi on Shidonni

2010-03-23T21:53:00.001+10:00

Shidonni on Prezi

NeoK12

2010-03-13T16:14:00.004+10:00

http://www.neok12.com/

This site offers a free collection of educational videos, lessons, quizzes and puzzles for students from K - 12. They are divided into categories such as Science, Social Studies, Math, English and offer a section called Fun videos on topics such as time lapse, slow motion, arts and crafts, music and sport.

You could spend hours browsing this site.

Game Classroom

2010-03-13T16:02:00.001+10:00

Still on the topic of educational games. Here is a site which is a collection of games for education.

http://www.gameclassroom.com/

The games have been divided into appropriate Grade levels for students from K - 6.

The games also categorise into topics.

There are maths games which develop skills in

Time and Measurement
Shapes
Numbers
Problem Solving
Comparisons
Shapes and Geometry
Statistics
Fractions
Time and Money
Measurement and Geometry
Equations
Fractions and Probability
Reasoning
Algebra
Graphs
Decimals

And Language Arts games which will develop skills in:

Letter and Word Sounds
Vocabulary
Listening and Speaking
Stories and Literature
Words
Grammar
Writing
Reading and Comprehension
Oral Presentations
Research and Technology

Brain Training Games

2010-03-12T22:32:00.002+10:00

There are many games labelled as Braining Training games, I like to think of them as Learning Training. When you look at the skills the Brain Training games focus on they are all important skills needed to learn.

Such as:

• Memory

• Concentration & Attention

• Language Skills

• Visual & Spatial

• Executive Functions (Logic & Reasoning)

The games available also assist in the development of skills in literacy, numeracy and ICT. Most are also accompanied with extra content students can learn about such as capital cities, countries, types of food and ways to cook, the list is endless. (These games are fun for adults too!)

There are several Brain Training sites, most offer a few free games and the opportunity to upgrade to unlock the other games.

http://www.fitbrains.com/

Fit Brains is a site which offers a range of games to help develop thinking skills. here is a list of free games.

A Cross-training brain game designed to develop all skills.

Memory Brain Games improve short and long-term recall abilities.

Make words out of letters you are given

Make words by adding letters or words

Put words into categories

Break the code by adding letters and learn about different cultures.

Add arrows to direct the fruit

Identify the correct shapes

Give the robot directions to move on a map

Buy food and keep to a budget

Add combinations of numbers to remove the blocks

Memorise ingredients and instructions

Identify and select shapes

Other Brain Training sites

http://www.lumosity.com/

http://www.mind360.com/

There are also Brain training games available for Nintendo DS,

here are a few:

There are also Brain training apps available for ipods.

Lumosity

Brain Challenge

Brain Challenge 2: Think Again!

Speed Brain

Brain Exercise

Boost your brain

Brain Training

Brain Tuner

Braineous

Brain Quest

Teachers are fountains of knowledge

2010-03-11T14:06:00.002+10:00

Teachers are walking fountains of knowledge. The 21st century has provided the tools for teachers to share their knowledge globally. A great way for teachers to reflect on their own work is to collect and share their resources. It is one thing to use resources but the act of sharing resources is also accompanied by a learning process.

You have to reflect on your own knowledge, prioritise, collect and filter. Once you have all your resources what is the next step. Here is a range of sites teachers can use to create and share online resources.

I want to thank @2sparkley http://2sparkley.edublogs.org%20/ and @mwedwards http://mwedwardstechnology.blogspot.com/ for inspiring this post.

1. Create a blog

There are many sites which allow you to create your own blog. A blog allows you to share ideas, links, images and many other resources. Many are free or have a free option. It is also a great way to keep all your resources in one place.

2. Create a presentation

There are many sites which allow you to share presentations. The presentations may be a step by step tutorial, share information, provide links, reflect on practice. Many sites allow you to upload powerpoints or documents or create animated presentations and add voice and music.

3. Create a Video

There are many video sharing sites the most popular being http://www.youtube.com/

Your video may be a demonstration, documentation or a tutorial.

Create computer tutorials by recording the desktop which is called screen casting.

4. Create Social bookmarks

Social bookmarking sites allow you to save links, tag them and share with others.

5. Create Ebooks

Ebooks are virtual books you can access online, download or embed.

6. Share images

Carrot Sticks

2010-03-11T11:47:00.002+10:00

http://www.carrotsticks.com/

This is a site designed for students from grades 1 - 5 to learn and develop math skills. Students have the option of answering sums by themselves or competing against an opponent.

You do not have to register to play.

The free option only offers addition sums, the paid options also offers subtraction, multiplication and division.

First, students can create their own character by clicking on the item they want to change and then clicking on the arrows which appear. This activity could extend into a writing activity or group discussion where students can explain why their character looks the way they do. Students can change skin colour, hair style, eyes, mouth, shirt, pants, shoes and the item in the hand.

The character appears at the bottom of the screen.

The sum appears and students simply type in the answer.

There is a panel on the left hand side where you can choose the type of sum (if in paid version) and choose the level of difficulty.

Carrot Sticks is a fun and easy to use site making it perfect for younger students.

Handipoints

2010-03-10T20:51:00.001+10:00

http://www.handipoints.com/

This site offers a virtual version of a reward chart system. Children adopt a pet cat and earn points by completing tasks on their To Do List. There are options to buy clothes for the cat and decorate their home, play games and walk around a virtual world and socialise with other cats. Emphasis is placed on rewarding good behaviour, being healthy, creativity and doing well in school.

The site provides free options and paid options. There is also a paid option for teachers.

This would be a great site to pass on to parents to work with their children at home.

This site would be great for primary students.

The site provides a range of printable sheets for chore charts, worksheets and art and craft activities.

The cat appears on the score card. Children can dress the cat and change the background.

You can create your own To Do List. There are a range of options to choose from or create your own.

The To Do List appears like this and you can click on each box as the task is completed.

Each task earns Handi points and Bonus Points.

Handi Points will earn rewards set by the teacher, parent or by the students themselves.

The Bonus Points will buy items within the game such as clothes for their cat and furniture for the cat's house.

There is a virtual world component where students can navigate within the virtual world and communicate with others. There are rules of conduct and options for Standard Safe Chat Mode or Super Safe Chat Mode. The Super Chat Mode restricts students to questions and comments which are provided.

Here is a map of the virtual world.

Buy furniture and decorate the cat's home.

The furniture can be bought by browsing through a virtual CATalogue.

The furniture is divided into theme sets. This allows teachers to explore themes and could be a great CATalyst for story writing.

This is an example of the princess theme.

Clothes are bought using the same method and are also divided into themes and careers.

As tasks are completed students are also rewarded with stamps to place into their virtual album. The album focuses on healthy living and gives information about each topic.

This site can be used in many ways. It can raise discussions about what it takes to be a good person and how we should treat each other. What does it mean to behave as a responsible citizen or a global citizen.

It would be great to use in a health unit as there is emphasis on healthy eating and exercise.

The site educates students how to behave and manage a virtual world giving them experience in a more controlled environment.

Students can bring their cats to life and create models and paintings of them, write stories, explore themes or even research different careers which are represented in the Clothing Catalogue.

A great activity for a teacher could be to create a To Do List for the class,

what behaviours and tasks are needed to sustain a safe and fun learning environment?

An A - Z list of Virtual World Games

2010-03-09T23:04:00.007+10:00

Here is a list of Virtual World games I have collected. Some I am already familiar with, however, there are a few new ones. I have not yet had the chance to explore them all.

I will review a few more in the next couple of posts.

Virtual World games are designed for a range of ages from preschool to teens and focus on a vast range of subjects. Many allow students to communicate with others, play games, earn points and have ownership over their character allowing them to design their home and their clothes.

It is a matter of finding the best game to suit your students.

Action Allsatars

http://actionallstars.com/reg/

http://ayiti.newzcrew.org/ayitiunicef/

http://barbiegirls.com/homeMtl_b.html

http://www.beastquest.co.uk/default.aspx

http://www.bellasara.com/index_bs.aspx

http://www.binweevils.com/index.php

http://www.buildabearville.com/

http://play.camppete.com/

http://www.chobots.com/

http://www.clubpenguin.com/

http://www.clubtimemachine.com/

http://www.dinokids.com/

http://www.dinosaurjunction.com/

http://www.dinosawus.com/

http://www.dizzywood.com/

http://www.eartheternal.com/

http://www.ecobuddies.com/

https://www.ekidnaworld.com/

http://play.ekoloko.com/ekoloko/index.html?language=en

http://www.fantage.com/

http://www.franktownrocks.com/

http://www.freddo.com.au/

http://www.freerealms.com/

http://www.gardenpartyworld.com/

http://www.habbo.com/

Handipoints

http://www.hipchicas.com/site/php/index.php

http://www.horseland.com.au/

http://www.howrse.com/

Jimi Rock's Under the Sea Adventures

http://www.jumpstart.com/aboutus/aboutus.aspx

http://www.kidscom.com/

http://lasuni.com/

http://labyrinth.thinkport.org/www/

http://www.magi-nation.com/

http://www.meez.com/

http://www.millsberry.com/

http://www.mingoville.com/en.html

http://www.minyanland.com/

http://www.moshimonsters.com/

http://www.munizonline.com/

http://www.neopets.com/

http://w01.ourworld.com/v11/?env=ourworld

http://www.petpetpark.com/

http://apps.pirates.go.com/pirates/v3/welcome

http://pixiehollow.go.com/

http://www.planetsoccerlive.com/index.aspx

http://www.poptropica.com/

https://www.preciousgirlsclub.com/pgc/pgcHome.jsp

http://www.playbrainstorm.com/#/home/dev

http://www.ridemakerz.com/RZ/Default.aspx

http://www.rocketon.com/a/intro.php

http://www.secretbuilders.com/

http://www2.shidonni.com/default.htm

http://www.shiningstars.com/

http://www.smallworlds.com/login.php?login=true

http://sociotown.com/

http://www.stardoll.com/en/

http://www.supersecret.com/signup

http://www.wiglingtonandwenks.com/

http://www.tinierme.com/tinierme/top.html

http://toontown.go.com/

http://www.tootsville.com/

http://ty-girlz.ty.com/

http://upperdecku.com/

http://www.vectorcityracers.com/pages/WelcomePage/

http://www.webbliworld.com/

http://www.webosaurs.com/

http://www.whyville.net/smmk/nice

http://www.wildwebwoods.org/popup.php?lang=en

http://www.woogiworld.com/

http://www.woozworld.com/

http://worldofcars.go.com/

http://www.xeko.com/

http://www.xivio.com/www/index.cfm

http://www.zulaworld.com/#ws=view_login

http://www.zwinkycuties.com/zqt/index.jhtml

Jimmi Rocks, Under the Sea Adventures

2010-03-08T20:33:00.000+10:00

I have been busy finding a collection of Virtual World Games. There are many to choose from and there are now games which are designed specifically for kids and have educational components.

Here is one I found interesting it is called Jimmi Rocks, Under the Sea Adventures.

http://www.jimirock.com/

This site focuses on the Underwater theme and allows students to navigate and explore within a virtual world. Students can learn facts about sea animals, create art, play games, communicate with others and earn points to decorate their own underwater world.

Parents or teachers register and they then have the option to :

* Accept and Request Buddies

* Limit time on Games

* Set Safe or Open Chat

* Monitor Child's Activities

There is a free option which can be upgraded to a paid mebership.

This site provides opportunities to develop literacy skills, creativity, decision making and to develop knowledge about sea creatures and the world in which they live.

There are different places to visit and in each place is a book which you can read and are given options to select to continue the story.

This is the list of activities students can engage in.

Choose and design an underwater character.

Learn about Sea Creatures.

Paint a Sea Scape

Learn about sea creatures a Sea School

Visit Dive Sites

Answer a quiz about the dive sites

Write a message to be sent in a bottle.

This site would be great for primary school students and possibly lower secondary. It is excellent if you are working with underwater themes. It addresses subject areas such as science, art and SOSE.

Collection of Dinosaur Resources

2010-03-06T22:27:00.004+10:00

Dinosaur Train

2010-03-06T19:24:00.000+10:00

http://pbskids.org/dinosaurtrain/index.html

Dinosaur Train is a great interactive site which both informative and fun. It is on PBS Kids and based on the TV show created by The Jim Henson Company. This is a great site for younger children who are interested in dinosaurs or if they are learning about them at school.

The site offers several activities such as games called Pteradon Fishing, Hungry, Hungry, Herbivore and How Big are you?

The Field Guide allows children to learn about different dinosaurs by selecting them and listening to facts about them, see their bones, see how larger they are in relation to a child and find out whether they are a herbivore, omnivore or carnivore.

There are also colour-in sheets to print out and videos to watch.

This is a great way for children to learn more about dinosaurs, learn different word meanings and improve their computer skills.

Manga High

2010-03-06T18:02:00.000+10:00

Manga High

Manga High is a site which offers fun and interative Maths games. The games are great for upper primary and secondary students and they offer several difficulty levels. The games are free and teachers can register their school and create student accounts. Here are the games which are available:

Develop skills in Number, Algebra, Shape, Data

Develop skills in Linear equations, Using number machines, One/multi-stage equations

Develop skills in BIDMAS, Powers, Roots, Times tables

Develop skills in Percentages, Addition, Subtraction, Multiplication, Division

Develop skills in Trigonometry, Pythagoras, Areas, Perimeters, Circumference

Develop skills in Ordering, Decimals, Fractions, Percentages

Develop skills in Reflections, Rotations, Enlargements, Translations

Develop skills in Linear equations, Quadratic equations, Cubic equations, Coordinates, BIDMAS

A Collection Of Fun Maths Site

2010-03-06T17:45:00.002+10:00

Learn about Habitats with Zoo Tycoon

2010-02-16T22:22:00.002+10:00

Zoo Tycoon

The other day, I asked my daughter what she was doing at school and she said she was learning about different habitats. She asked me questions about different animals and where they live. During the holidays we had played Zoo Tycoon 2 together, so I used aspects of the game to explain different environments in which animals live. It then occurred to me how great this game would be for learning about habitats.

Zoo Tycoon is a PC game and has many different versions such as African Adventure, Extinct Animals, Marine Mania and Endangered Species. Within the game you can select animals and then create the correct environment for them including food and shelter. The game allows a bird’s eye view and a ground view. You can also take photos to put into an album. The graphics are very realistic.

It is a Tycoon game so other aspects of the zoo are important such as facilities, maintenance and profit. This game can be used as stimulus for many different activities such as art, science, sose, it also includes elements to develop literacy and numeracy skills, and most of all it is fun to play!

Choose a location on the globe to build your Zoo.

Select the type of environment and the relevant animals appear.

Biome Modification

Alter the environment to suit the animal using the Biome brush. It will create the correct environmet for the animals. You can then select the correct food and shelter.

Get close up views of animals and take photos.

Information is given on each animal.

http://zootycoon.com/Products/default.htm

Zoopedia

Read about different animals.

More Poisson Rouge

2010-02-14T20:46:00.003+10:00

After further exploring, I have realised Poisson Rouge offers great potential for learning vocabulary and different languages.

http://www.poissonrouge.com/

If you scroll over the castles in the bottom right hand corner, you will notice one with a Greek Flag, one with an English flag, one with a French Flag and one with a Chinese Flag. These flags represent the language used in each game. When you click on one of the castles another castle appears.

You can then scroll over areas of the castle to learn categories of words such as:

Toys,

Kitchen,

Body,

Animals,

Workshop,

Bathroom,

Numbers,

Clothes,

Music,

Transport.

You can also click on the seasons on the black board and click on the insects flying around.

This is the same for each castle only in the different languages.

This is a great activity for students to explore. You could even set a type of scavenger hunt and see if the students can find the items in the game.

Create fun effects with Photos

2010-02-14T19:06:00.004+10:00

Poisson Rouge

2010-02-13T16:45:00.000+10:00

http://www.poissonrouge.com/

This is an engaging interactive site with a lot of potential. It includes music, art, colours, matching games, astronomy, letters, numbers and time to just name a few. You can click on each image to take you to a game.

When you click on the keyboard it takes you to a music game. When you click on a key on the keyboard the note is written on the staff above.

When you click on the clock, you go to this game where you can move the hands on the clock and the corresponding digital time is displayed.

Being an art teacher I love this one, when you click on the stain glass window with the fish on it, you go to a virtual art gallery. You can then look at four different artworks created by Pollock, Warhol, Mondrian and Escher. When you click on each one you can interact or create a work.

Create a Jackson Pollock inspired work or

alter the colours on Andy Warhol's Marilyn Monroe prints

When you click on the little people you can create your own choir and harmony.

Click on the telescope and discover constellations.

Click on the picture and explore optical illusions.

The paint and brush will take you to a colouring activity.

You can even mix colours and clean your brush in the water.

There are many more activities available on this site. I spent hours on it, imagine how engaged children world be.

Worth 1000

2010-02-13T15:47:00.005+10:00

http://www.worth1000.com/tour

This has to be one of my favourite sites and gives me great inspiration. Worth1000 is a creative contest community. My particular favourite is the photo effects category. A task is given and people submit their response.

I love to use these as tasks in the classroom when creating digital effects. They are also great to put up around the room to inspire creativity.

Why not create the 1000 words (well it doesn't have to be that many), ask students to create a story or discription of the image.

You can view the current contests or search the gallery for past contests. You will be amazed!

Turn yourself into a cartoon!

2010-02-12T23:54:00.006+10:00

Here are just a few avatar creators I like to use. I created this glog for my students who were making a personal profile on themselves and one of the tasks was to create an avatar. For more avatar creators go to http://www.slideshare.net/shend5/creating-characters

Online Drawing Tools

2010-02-08T23:10:00.001+10:00

I have often used Glogster in class and love to use it as a form of a Digital Portfolio for students to reflect on their work. After seeing the blog, Bits and Pieces Place, I saw how great it is as a source of links. I wanted to create a list of links for online drawing tools, so I thought this could be a fun way to do it.