Think Different #113
Resources for the Week of Jan 26, 2020
iPad iCamp update
A Free QR Code Generator WITHOUT Limits?
QRCode Monkey is free, easy to use, and has no limitations on the number of times a QR Code can be accessed. You can link to text, social media, email, YouTube, text messages, and even phone numbers.
There are even ways to customize the color and design of your QR Codes in order to make it more attractive and accessible.
And if you need for features you can switch over to QRCode Studio. It does all kinds of other stuff for a fee of course.
Nebo really is still the best app for translating your handwriting
Have you tried Google's Jamboard?
A Collaborative, Digital Whiteboard. Share Ideas In Real-Time. Learn More Today. Drop images, add notes, and pull assets directly from the web in collaboration. Precision With Ease. Easy for Everyone. Built for Collaboration. Smarter Working. Easy to setup and use.
Get students collaborating in innovative ways
Boost student collaboration and engagement with the Jamboard app — powered by Google Cloud. Student tablet users can access a suite of rich editing tools to collaborate with students or educators. You can even access it from a web browser too.
Students can jam from anywhere
Educators can engage all students in the learning process, whether working together in a traditional classroom, a group seminar setting, or through distance learning. The Jamboard app for Android and iOS makes it easy for students and educators to join in on the creativity from their phone, tablet, or Chromebook.
How to Sign Up for Free Apple TV+ Subscription for 1 Year
Read More Books! Check out the app that brings the library to you.
The app is the gateway to your local library’s vast digital collection. Using it couldn’t be easier. Upon launching the app for the first time, you’re greeted by a simple, chatlike interface that walks you through the process of logging in with your library card. It feels like talking with a friendly librarian.
Don’t have a library card yet? Not a problem. As part of a pilot program running in some parts of the country, you can sign up for one right within Libby. (If your area isn’t included, apply for a card in person—it's quick, easy, and free!)
Libby replaces the Overdrive app that many libraries were using, and offers a number of upgrades: an in-app audiobook reader, integrated dictionary, and a more intuitive design.
Find what you’re looking for
Just as your local librarians curate the selection of physical books in your library, they also select the content available through Libby, taking into account the community’s needs and tastes. You can then browse the catalog, view themed collections, and check out ebooks for immediate reading.
Just as with paper books, each library has limited copies of a digital title. If the one you want is already checked out, place a hold; the book will automatically be checked out and delivered to your device when available.
Best of all, when your loan is due, it automatically gets “returned”—which means you and your family will never incur a late fee.
Libraries matter
In the information age, libraries very much need your support. Licensing all that digital content costs money and time. And remember, libraries don’t just offer free books. In many communities, they provide employment workshops, computer certification classes, and free access to a computer and the internet.
So if you haven’t been to your local library for a while, start by connecting through Libby. The world of reading will truly be at your fingertips.
Making the Grade: Celebrating ten years of iPad in K-12
Did you know you could annotate on Powerpoint on your iPad
Looking to annotate your slides in Microsoft PowerPoint? Your Apple Pencil is the easiest way.
It’ll smooth the process whether you need to scribble on class notes, update a sales pitch, or fix your boss’s spelling.
To try it out, connect your Apple Pencil to your compatible iPad or iPad Pro and tap on PowerPoint’s Draw tab. That’s where you’ll find tools to write, draw, edit, highlight, and doodle. Of course, you can also use your Apple Pencil to select objects and text boxes.
Read on to learn cool ways to use your Apple Pencil with PowerPoint. And if you don’t have an Apple Pencil, just pretend this entire article is talking about your finger.
Master the basics
- The Draw tab is home to a number of features that’ll probably look familiar, including a variety of markers, pencils, and highlighters.
- Tap one to select it, then tap again to reveal a menu that lets you adjust color and thickness.
- To undo a note or a sketch you made, just tap the eraser, which makes your last change go away.
- Dramatically improve your handwriting
- If you were born in the post-cursive age, there’s a good chance your handwriting is a hot mess. But that’s OK! PowerPoint has your back.
- Write directly on a slide using your Apple Pencil, then tap the Ink to Text button in the top right corner. Select your scribble using the Lasso Select tool and the app will automatically convert your writing to readable type (or suggest a few options for doing so).
- Get in perfect shape
- If you believe in yourself, nothing in life is impossible. Except drawing a geometrically perfect circle freehand. PowerPoint and Apple Pencil can help here too.
- Draw something approximating a circle (or square, triangle, or rhombus, theoretically, although we can’t imagine why you’d need a rhombus) and tap Ink to Shape in the top right corner.
- Now select on your amorphous shape using the lasso tool and PowerPoint will convert it into a perfectly proportioned form that would make your geometry teacher weep with joy
You really do need this BOOK
Earlier this month, John Spencer published Vintage Innovation.
This has been a labor of love over the last two years. John interviewed hundreds of teachers, read all kinds of research, and spent time thinking deeply about this topic. Vintage Innovation is a big idea book. It doesn’t read like an instruction manual or a research tome. He doesn’t believe there is a recipe for innovation. His goal is to provide tools and share stories. This is why the book also includes access to a toolkit packed with lesson plans, templates, blueprints, and protocols that you can modify for your own environment.
Vintage Innovation redefines innovation not as “new and flashy” but as “better and different.” It isn’t a rejection of new approaches or cutting-edge technology so much as an embrace of the old and the new. It’s the overlap of the “tried and true” and the “never tried.” It’s a mash-up of lo-fi tech and new tech. It’s the idea of finding relevance by looking back and looking forward. It’s a focus on timeless skills in new contexts. It’s the idea that innovation happens when teachers take a both/and approach as they empower their students in the present to prepare them for an uncertain future.
A few people have asked John if he would run a Vintage Innovation book club. .
- The Vintage Innovation Book Club: John will be running the Vintage Innovation online book club. Here are the details:
- When will it run?: The book club will run from February 7th through March 14th. This gives you plenty of time to purchase your book ahead of time.
- Where will it occur?: The book club will run on a private Facebook group. After filling out the form below, you will receive an email with details about how to join either group.
- Who is invited?: Anyone who wants to discuss the core ideas of the book in an interactive setting.
- How do I sign up?: Check the directions below: Easy as 1-2-3. Thank you for signing up for the Vintage Innovation Book Club! Here are the steps for getting started:
- Make sure that you have purchased a copy of Vintage Innovation.
- Sign up for the Vintage Innovation private Facebook group here.
- Questions will be posted starting February 7th. Once that begins, feel free to share your ideas and insights.
Let's Connect!
Follow John's Facebook page for his latest articles and some of his favorite curated resources from other. Also, you might be interested in his YouTube Channel, where he creates sketch videos for teachers.
Think Different Resources
Weekly resources are archived at http://www.cyndikuhn.info under Weekly Resources
Email: cyndidk@ksu.edu
Website: http://www.cyndikuhn.info
Location: Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS, United States
Phone: 785-532-5812
Twitter: @cyndidannerkuhn