Thing 14 - It all started with a seed (POD)

Podcasts! I've listened to some before, I didn't actually realize that they were so new. I checked out several of the sites. Many were for students above the elementary level, but I found a few very good. The "storynory" site was good, lots of stories for kids to listen to. I spotted this one right away http://storynory.com/2006/05/06/the-gingerbread-man/ and listened because I know my kindergarten teachers do a unit on the gingerbread man. It's one more they can use. Another good story site is http://www.learnoutloud.com/Podcast-Directory/Literature/American-Classics/Childrens-Fun-Storytime-Podcast/23099 there are a lot of classics there, either single stories or a chapter by chapter, like "Alice in Wonderland".

I also found the SanDiego Zoo podcasts cool. http://www.sandiegozoo.org/podcast/index.html They have information about the animals as well as a glimps into the zoo. Third grade researched animals last year and the kids loved looking up info on animals. I found some videos they could watch and I think these podcasts will be a great addition for them. The site has some video podcasts about the early years of the zoo and the animals they had there. Very interesting.

I also checked out Grammar girl http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/default.aspx it looks like it has a few things that will work for elementary, like the "Everybody: Singular or Plural" but the teachers would need to read ahead and pick a section the kids should hear as some of it is too complicated for elementary. It would be perfect for middle or high school though.

Thing 13 - the show must go on

I took a look at the options. Thumbstacks is easy and most like a standard presentation. Students could use this for classroom presentations. It doesn't have all the bells and whistles of PowerPoint, but it is sufficiant for simple presentations. It can be pulled up on any computer, PC or Mac, without any particular program as long as it has internet, so that's a plus. And it's free. I made this 3 page slideshow in a few minutes, (once I made the pictures public in Flickr) http://www.thumbstacks.com/play.html?show=a7847230f1803952ab692df4b0543591

Slideshare you have to have a slideshow to download, so you need a program to begin with, but then you can open it anywhere or email the link and someone could see it on the other side of the world without the same program. I like the idea of combining a slideshow and a podcast to make a webcast. I might use that to show students or other teachers how to use some programs or websites.

Slide is super easy and very cool. Kids will like it, but it's not a school or professional slidshow. It is fun though! I made this in about 1 minute http://www.slide.com/r/zq_Nl4ds2z-u1_4GtSdPZmccT5k-K_HJ?previous_view=mscd_embedded_url&view=original
I can see using this to share pictures with family and friends.

Thing 12 - On with the show!

I tried the Zoho Show. Again I like Power Point better but it's pretty good if you don't own PPT. I made a show and published it here. http://show.zoho.com/public/adacutandpaste/Thing%2012%20-%20Zoho%20Show

I think this could be a good multi media lesson for students. I do Powerpoint presentations with 4th graders and not all of them have PPT at home. I may show them this once they've learned powerpoint as an option for those who don't have PPT and want to make shows at home for school. They would have to post it to the web publically though. I tried exporting and saving as both a powerpoint doc and a powerpoint show and I couldn't get either one to open on my computer in the powerpoint application.

I tried Library thing http://www.librarything.com/ I love that. I belong to a book club and want to use it to help remember names of books read there as well as at home. I think it's great! Teachers could easily use it to list books they suggest students read. Great product and very easy to use.

Thing 11 - More trouble than it's worth???

I think the applications are great if you don't have another option but they are no threat to MS office! Maybe, once you've gotten used to it, you can navigate it better than I can. I've made a document and made it public. I couldn't post it to my Blog. It said the Blog was unavailable (I noticed it split the name of the Blog, maybe it's too long?) If making it public worked, you can find it here.
http://writer.zoho.com/public/adacutandpaste/23-Things---Thing-11

Thing Ten - Wiki work!

Well, I jumped in that water and got all wet again! But I didn't drown! I made a wiki! It's not much to look at yet, but I added a page for the Where's Wanda Wiki that I mentioned in the last post. I hope it works well. We'll see. It was easy to make the wiki. I did mine open to the public because I want Wanda to be sent all over, but I'm thinking of making a private one that the kids can post to in computer class. Looking at the teacher help for wikispace, It should not be hard to give them access, wikispaces does it if you send them a list. I'm still concerned about it staying appropriate, but I'll just keep an eye on it and see. My space is here http://wolterswikiworld.wikispaces.com if you want to check it out! Feel free to add to the page called "23 things" and test it out.

Thing 9 - Wiki Wiki!

I think the concept of the Wiki is great, but I think security and "vandalism” must be a big issue. The sites I visited were protected and you either has to be part of a select group, or at least sign up, in order to edit and/or post. Some would allow you to post, but then it’s just a blog, isn’t it? I had trouble deciding if they were websites, wikis, or blogs. There were good ideas out there though. The “Library Success: A Best Practices Wiki”, http://www.libsuccess.org/index.php?title=Main_Page , had a lot of good information for librarians and IT people. It wasn’t as user friendly as others, but I could see it as a wiki rather than a one person website or a blog. In “Kyli and Brittney’s wiki space” and “Brittany’s Space”, http://bjordan.wikispaces.com/ , the students organized class notes to help study for English class. This would be great as a wiki for group study. Other group members can correct wrong information, fill in missing information and express opinions. It ends up being a great study guide! The “Study Hall site, http://studyhall.wikispaces.com/ , was excellent too. Homework is easily displayed and accessed. Different teachers hyperlinked subjects titles to pages where they put in helps, homework, links, and notes for students. It was easy to get around in.

On one wiki page, http://www.teachersfirst.com/content/wiki/wikiideas1.cfm , I found an idea I may try at school. It is for “Where is Wanda Wiki” an online version of Flat Stanley. The third grade teachers at my school have their students send out Flat Stanley’s and track where Stanley visits. I’d like to coordinate that with a Wanda Wiki. I’m thinking of sending her out in an email to a couple people and asking them to write on the wiki page and then forward the email to a couple more people. We can track it in computer class. I am concerned about appropriate information being added since we are an elementary school. When I make a wiki, I’ll see if I can get it to work.

Thing 8 - more RSS

These search engines made things easier. Even though I used Google Reader for my feeds I found the Bloglines search tool the friendliest and easiest to use. I think for starting to use RSS these tools are very helpful. I think from now on though, I'll just watch for the feed icons on webpages I like and visit regularly. Going through these searches I was tempted to add a lot and there's no way I'll be able to keep up with everything! I'll just watch for things that truly interest me as I browse on the web and visit favorite places. This will be very useful, though, to keep trck of news for classroom subjects. Much faster than searching for something new about a subject , for example endangered animals or current events.