Google

Something I have really found amazing in this class is how useful Google is.  There are so many different products that can be used in so many different ways!  I have even started using Google Drive more for group projects and for just storing my data.  In my RA job, I have also used Google forms to send out surveys to my residents.  I've been a blogger for a while, but I had no clue that it was associated with Google.  I've really realized how many great free resources there are out there that I can use in the classroom. The Google Drive is just so versatile, and I have found many different ways to use it.  For example, the presentation option is great if you want your presentation to be easily accessible. The forms option is also great because the information you collect is easily organized in a spreadsheet automatically. I wish I had taken advantage of these resources earlier! 

Scavenger Hunt

This week, we went on a scavenger hunt!  With the two social studies guys, I went around campus and took pictures of things like political bias, important dates in history, and things that changed the world.  After we had finished taking all the photos, we came back into the classroom to start editing and putting them together.  In order to incorporate French, I would use a scavenger hunt to allow students to connect words and things.  Sometimes, students struggle to learn vocabulary without seeing the object and actually using the words in a real life situation.  On Tuesday after taking the photos, I was a little confused about the project.  After exploring pixlr a little bit more, I feel like I can comfortably resize and edit all the photos easily.  Here are just a few of the pictures we took:

Something showing bias. 

Something more than 40 years old:  A rock! 

 We also talked about the tool Glogster which gives you the ability to make online interactive posters.   I feel like this would be really cool to use to introduce a lesson or to give instructions for a project.  It might be hard to use with students because you have to have an account to access it.  It would be possible, but not easy. 

Images and Wordle

This week, we started our discussion on images, and Sandy and Monica gave their Web 2.0 presentation on Wordle.  I am actually really looking forward to getting into more depth concerning images.  I've always loved using Photoshop and using images to decorate my blogs and anything else I make online.  We talked on Tuesday about how websites like facebook automatically re-size your photos for you.  I've actually had to work with this in the past when I needed a photo that was an exact size to send to my school in France.  I really struggled in resizing it, but I eventually found a way to do it.  I'm sure the way we learn in class will be much more straight forward than the way I did it. 

The other thing we learned about is Wordle, a tool that creates word clouds out of any words you choose.  I've seen some of my professors use a word cloud as decoration on the blackboard class site, and also on their own personal websites.  I think that I would use it when introducing a lesson.  For example, if I were talking about regular -er verbs, I could make a wordle with the verbs we would be using that day and have it on the board when the students come into the classroom.  Here are a couple examples of word clouds of common French verbs I made using Wordle.  I used the same verbs for both, but I changed the formatting a little bit.  I really enjoyed how many unusual font options were available on Wordle.  I could spend a lot of time just changing the formatting on the word cloud because it was really fun! 

Timetoast!

My group was assigned to work with Timetoast!  Timetoast is a tool that allows you to create your own interactive timelines.  It is a perfect way for students to be able to learn about an historic event without being overloaded with information.  It's also great because there is already an enormous database full of timelines that have already been created.  

The process of making a timeline is actually really easy.  All you need to do is add either an event or time span.  For each event, you can add a photo and a paragraph or two of information.  You could even attach links to different websites. When the timeline is finished, you actually embed it into a webpage.  So, students wouldn't even have to leave a wiki, for example, to see the timeline.   I really wish I had known about this tool when I was taking some history courses a couple years ago.  I think that timetoast could be really beneficial to history teachers, and also to foreign language teachers when they teach about the history of the country/ language.