Tech Tools for Teachers
A Digital Newsletter of Technology Integration Ideas
My Mission
After attending the KySTE conference last week, I have learned so many new strategies for incorporating technology into my lessons. In order to share these ideas with my colleagues, I will be sending out several digital newsletters over the next few weeks. After looking through these ideas, if you have any questions about how to use them, feel free to contact me and I will do what I can to assist you. Be adventurous and try at least one of these strategies with your students. Please share with me how it goes. I'd love to use some of your students' creations as examples in future newsletters.
Bring Your Projects to Life
This website and app allow one to make any picture interactive with hotspots that open up to share text, pictures, videos, links, and audio. This program has a variety of uses in any classroom subject. For example, a student can take a picture of a project he has made for class and add hotspots to the picture in order to share information about the project. Below are some examples using some projects already displayed around school. Just think, now these projects can come to life and reach more people when shared on our school webpage, Mr. Ferguson's Week at a Glance, Class Youtube pages, etc.
Mrs. Rudy's Word Wall
Students create visual displays with their vocabulary terms. Mrs. Rudy chooses the best ones to place on her word wall. With this program, the students can take their drawings to a new level. Check out this example of the vocabulary term "stalactites."
Mrs. Kidd's Pyramid Dioramas
Students in Mrs. Kidd's class made pyramids illustrating the rock cycle. After taking a picture of one and adding hotspots to it, this student was able to convey her true understanding of the concept. Check out her thinglink interactive picture about Sedimentary Rocks.
Adding Audio to Pictures - Create a Slideshow
This app allows you to import images and/or draw within the app, either on a blank page or an image you import. You can then record audio over each image you have selected. It puts them all together to create one video presentation. I see this app being used in a variety of ways and have shared some examples below. Get creative and come up with additional ideas. Please share these with others and encourage them to use this app. This webpage also gives more suggestions and has a search engine for you to find presentations done by other teachers and students. Some videos are by enrollment only and are set to private. Here, you can also join the 30 Hands community and see even more examples.
Book Reviews
Many LA teachers ask their students to create some type of book review or project to show that they truly read the book. How about letting them tell about the book by adding audio to the a picture of the book jacket. Here is an example from one of Mrs. Shoulta's students.
Math Problem Explanation
Here, a student was asked to take pictures of his math work as he solved a fraction division problem using models. Then, he added the audio using the 30 Hands App to tell about each step. Modeling the Division of Fractions
Social Studies Project - Feudalism
Ms. Revlett's students were asked to work in groups to create a feudalism pyramid. Using the 30 Hands App, one student shares what she learned about each of these levels of feudalism.
Annette Sapp
I have many more strategies to share...looking forward to hearing about how you use technology in your classroom.
Email: annette.sapp@daviess.kyschools.us
Location: Burns Middle School, Goetz Drive, Owensboro, KY, United States
Phone: (270) 852-7400
Twitter: @sappy704