Tech Tip Tuesday
January 13, 2015
In this Issue: TAGUL, Doulingo, Biblionasium, Pic Collage, and Tech Table Talks!
TAGUL - Word Cloud Creator
- Word size, color, angle, and font
- Shape of your background - there are nearly 100 to choose from or upload your own silhouette
- Background color, rollover text color, or rollover box color
How to Use in Your Classroom
This tool has multiple uses in the classroom. Teachers may use it as a transformed spelling list, a study guide, note handouts, etc. Students may use these for summarizing, book reports, listing verbs or adjectives, creating study guides, etc.
TAGUL is web based but will also work on the web browser of a tablet. To share the finished word clouds, students may save the image or grab the URL link. Check out my word cloud here.
Tyler Leipprandt's Upcoming School Visit Dates
January 13 - Lakers - Full Day
January 14 - Bad Axe - Full Day
January 15 - Ubly - Full Day
January 19 - Owen-Gage - Full Day
January 20 - North Huron - 9 a.m. - 1 p.m.
Duolingo - Learn a Language
This program allows students to learn by reading, listening, translating, and speaking. As students complete tasks, the challenges start to get more advanced. If students get stuck on new words or phrases, there is always an on-screen dictionary they can quickly refer to. The further students get, they will be awarded with virtual badges and are able to track the progress they are making. Duolingo is available as an IOS, Android, and Windows Phone app, as well as on the web. Get started with your account or your students account at www.duolingo.com.
How to Use in Your Classroom
Start this experience at any age as it will be beneficial for them as they get older. High school students are now required to take two years of foreign language and it is recommended that students get one year of experience before high school. This app would not give students one year of experience, but it would be a good supplement. Duolingo could be used as a rotating station for little kiddos, time could be spent on it in the computer lab, or students could brush up on it if they have a few extra minutes a day.
Biblionasium - Student Reading Community
How to Use in Your Classroom
Biblionasium could be used to its fullest potential as teachers assign books and require students to enter their reading log and a book review or this site could be used just for fun for the students. They could have complete control over browsing for books, reviewing classmates' bookshelves, adding books they own, etc. I suggest this site to all readers! Motivated readers would love to have a place to compile all the books they have read and want to read, and unmotivated readers may need a little spark and change of setting to get them motivated. If you are interested, check out the Biblionasium site or watch the video below.
*Biblionasium is not a site for providing e-books. It is simply a tool used to search for book titles. Students must buy or check out books from their school/local library.
Pic Collage App
How to Use in Your Classroom
If you have access to an Apple or Android device, students could use this app to:
- Create an "About Me" page
- Create a list of their spelling words with pictures to represent them
- Find pictures on a topic being discussed in class. (This could be a color, number, noun, verb, history event, a location, etc.)
- Display all their art pieces they have created
- Create a book report
There are so many ways this app could be used in your classroom. Take advantage of this app as 75 million people have already downloaded this!