Thing #4 Video Hosting (YouTube)

I did not know it will be so easy to upload a video on YouTube, no wonder there's been so many videos being uploaded. I had made a photostory last summer on Houston during 23 things, so I just uploaded that.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MFoyksOPcRA

I liked TeacherTube and how it is arranged into channels. There were lots of small videos on Science that I would like to show to my students and may be put the videoclips in my flipchart. My students would also love to get their work or lab uploaded to Teacher Tube, and that can also be used and shown to my other students.

Thing #3 Like Skype

I have been using Skype for couple of years now. It is a great and very inexpensive way to talk/chat with people across the globe. I have friends and family in India/England/Dubai, so we have setup a time with them when they come and we do conference call with them. Sometimes we have friends and relatives from 7-8 different places and we all talk to each other at the same time.

We used to use Yahoo messenger and MSN messenger, we still sometimes do, but the sound quality is little better with skype. In Skype, however we cannot do video conferencing with more than two contacts, so we also open Yahoo messenger and use that webcam, but we have to compromise in picture and voice quality.

In the classroom, we can use this to stay connected with other teachers, or team teach and collaborate.

Thing #2 Image Generators 2

Wordle is a great tool to work with especially to introduce or review the vocabulary to the students. Here is the one that I made on Forces and Motion. Students will have lots of fun making their own wordles.

I liked both the Glogster/edu and the VoiceThread. I think students can sometimes use glogster instead of making a poster. It will be something different for the students and will give them some variety and also learn this great tool. VoiceThread is a great for commenting.

Animoto – is very similar to photostory and can be made very easily. Students, at the end of the project can create an animoto with the snaps of their project and create a movie. I liked the Voki – the talking avatar, it did not have as much choices as the yahoo avatar though.

Bookr is also another great tool show pictures. Here is the one I made on Michael Jackson.

Thing #1: Registration and the networked student (11.5 things)

Great movie!! The people in this day and age are exposed to so much knowledge and information; it is wonderful and sometimes scary also. I liked the way the video was shown it was simple and easy to follow.

Teacher's role as the facilitator and a guide is very important. It seems like the student is doing all the research and the work, but I think teacher is playing a bigger role and has more responsibility than a regular teacher. Teacher has to monitor the student's progress when each student is at a different place and guiding them and making sure they are at the right track and not wondering away.

The part when the student is easily able to listen to the lecture by a professor in Berkley University or anywhere regardless of the location is very COOL!!

Library2Play 2, 11.5 More Things

I am so glad Library2Play is back again. It was lots of fun last summer, and I am looking forward to this one. I am jumping in the water, and trusting the lifegaurds will help me if I start to drown. I don't know what happened to my yahoo avatar, I tried removing and exporting it again, but it is still not showing.

Thing # 23: Summary

Yahoo!! It was great ride, and I am finally done with my 23 things.

What were your favorite discoveries or exercises on this learning journey?
My favorite discoveries were to create my own blog, my avatar, and the online image generator. I also liked watching and embedding the videos from YouTube and TeacherTube.

How has this program assisted or affected your lifelong learning goals?
This program has definitely assisted and affected my lifelong learning skills. I usually learn better when I see the person who is teaching and there is a face to face interaction. This was a great experience, and I feel more confidence in me.

Were there any take-a-ways or unexpected outcomes from this program that surprised you?
I was surprised by all the cool Google tools, and also Web 2.0 Award list. I am definitely going to go back and refer to it. I did not know that blogs, podcast, and audio books would be so easy to make and share.

What could we do differently to improve upon this program’s format or concept?
I loved the program; it was really good and very well organized. All the instructions were very clear and easy to follow.

If we offered another discovery program like this in the future, would you choose to participate?
I would definitely participate in another discovery program. This was lot of fun and learning.

How would you describe your learning experience in ONE WORD or in ONE SENTENCE, so we could use your words to promote 23 Things learning activities?
Getting ready for FUTURE and Mind Boggling.

Thing # 22: Nings

Nings is a great place for social networking. I looked at Ning for Teachers, it is a good place for teachers to connect and share ideas. I did not find any good lesson plans for high school Science, and for some lesson plans I was redirected to EdHelper.com Teacher's Blogs were good read and interesting.