Black & White and Scanned All Over

Excellent uses for QR codes in a school setting. How to make your own qr code hunt. http://www.classtools.net/QR/

I'm all a Twitter!

No I am not a twit but I am a fan of twitter for my professional development and although I am rather more a lurker and a re-tweeter, I am beginning to share my thoughts and resources with more frequency and confidence!

Recently on the VLN - my new virtual home,  I jumped into thread started by Tessa Gray called Why Twitter?  The discussion that ensued is well worth a read.

Tessa said "I've just been reading 12 Most Unexpected Ways Twitter Changed My Life and wondered, if you could do PL (professional learning) and PD (professional development) in your PJ's, what would be your 3 top reasons for using Twitter?

You can read the original article here.  12 unexpected ways Twitter changed my life

Find me on twitter at  @CatrionaPene

QR codes.

QR codes are a great fun activity for teachers and for students.
They are free to read and create, easy to use a for huge range of information and have that little bit of mystery attached that kids love!


What are QR codes?

You can download a QR code maker for free.

You can embed, video, maps, songs, images, twitterfeed, telephone number...




Here are some qr codes to try.

Here is a HOW TO resource for QR codes.

Here is a great example of how to integrate QR codes to add another dimension to children's artwork.
Once again taken from the amazing Sylvia Tolisano's Langwitches blog.

Here are two more examples from the Core Education Blog - Thanks Tania Coutts.
http://blog.core-ed.org/blog/2011/10/exploring-qr-codes-with-children.html

Breaking the google images habit.

I am linking this post to an excellent presentation by Suzie Vesper on "breaking the google images habit"

We are all guilty of using googles images to quickly and effortlessly source images to use in our classes and with our students but I would like to challenge you to make an effort to change your ways and with Suzie's help use copyright free images from now on and teach your students to do the same.

Draw some!

If you haven't already downloaded this app for use in your classrooms I suggest you get right onto it
but be warned!! It is totally addictive!!

Draw some is just like pictionary for the iPod and iPad, you play against a friend or randomly chosen player and get points for successfully drawing and solving another persons drawing.

As you gain points you can buy extra coloured pens or bombs to reduce the eletters you choose from.

It is lots of fun and it works really well in a classroom because as long as each device has its own email anyone can pick it up and play at any time.

Great for spelling skills, drawing skills, problem solving, team work, turn taking.

There is a free version to begin with but the full version will cost you $4.19

Chirp! a whole lot of fun!

Chirp

Description

Chirp is a magical new way to share your stuff – using sound. Chirp 'sings' information from one iPhone to another. Share photos, links, notes and more: all from your built-in iPhone speaker. What will you 

chirp?

Before you post that photo...

While putting together some handouts to give parents at a recent Netsafe evening I came across this fantastic handout.

It comes from http://www.commonsensemedia.org/ and was really well received by parents and by my friends with teenagers in the house!!

Great for dinner table discussion.

There is also a more junior version which is more suitable for junior primary children.

Make sure you visit the

commonsense site for

more great lessons and resources around digital citizenship.

How to write great blog comments.

Writing comments on blogs is something that needs to be taught just like any other writing skill.

The technique that I have used in my year 3 class to great effect is to teach the children using this checklist to first comment using sticky notes on work around the classroom walls. Then once they realise the power of giving and receiving genuine comments I send them off to comment on blog posts, first on our own class blog and then on other blogs.

A-blog-an-iphone-a-school-visit-and-its-impact.

This is a presentation I made for CORE before I came to work here.

It tells of a class trip to Te Hana and how I live blogged during the day to create a living record and to allow my special needs child and parents back in Whangarei at home and at work to be involved in the trip and to be able to talk to the children that night about what they had shared.

Click on the link to be taken to the CORE site to view it.

http://blog.core-ed.org/blog/2012/03/a-blog-an-iphone-a-school-visit-and-its-impact.html

Quadblogging.

Quadblogging is a great way to increase the traffic to your blog, share your blog with children around the world and teach your children to write authentic comments.

Sign up here to be part of a 4 blog rotation. Each blog takes it in turn to be the focus blog of the week and the other 3 blogs visit and comment.


This is a great experience for children as they see the similarities and differences between their blogs and those of other children around the world.

If you still need convincing  - check out this great reflection on quadblogging from Silvia Tolisano.

Inquiry and wondering go hand in hand.

In order to encourage a classroom of inquiry I believe it is important to first get children wondering.
One way to do this is to create a wonder wall, where the children post their wonderings on sticky notes.
Another is to use great sites like Wonderopolis to inspire the children to wonder.

Check it out here.

And leave me a comment to let me know what you and your students think.

Ipad and Ipod apps for the classroom and home.

Just before I left my teaching position the parents in my class requested a list of suitable, tried and tested apps for ipod and ipad use at home.
I put together this fold out and sent it home with each child. I also shared it with other parents from our school at a Netsafe evening organised by the PTFA.

Please feel free to use and share.

So many great resources - so little time!!

I hardly know where to start with all the great resources I have seen recently and now I am in not in a class to use them myself I need to be sure they are shared far and wide so they reach as many teachers and students as possible.

On Tuesday I was lucky enough to sit in on a workshop with Jill Hammond on literacy using e-Learning tools and she shared these great resources.

More information is also is available on Jill's page on the VLN click here

Thanks Tania for the invite - a very worthwhile 3 hours!

 http://juniorclasses.wikispaces.com/resources
Useful resources for the Junior room.
Developing awareness of keyboard layout while engaging in language games.
Daily news template to make an eReader PowerPoint and Keynote versions.
Presentations from Otepoti Think Conference.

Using a Recipe for writing
The recipe provides step by step guidance about what to write and how to make it impact on the reader.  It also provides an opportunity for the teacher to model at each step.  To add into the opportunity of working in this way, I use Etherpad as a collaborative writing space.  In this space children can see each others writing, which in itself provides a scaffold and support for struggling writers.

QuadBlogging

A Blog needs an audience to keep it alive for your learners. Too often blogs wither away leaving the learners frustrated and bored. Quadblogging gives your blog a truly authentic and global audience that will visit your blog, leave comments and return on a cycle. 

Storybird - Reading/Creating stories

Storybirds are short, art-inspired stories you make to share, read, and print.

Read them like books, play them like games, and send them like greeting cards. They’re curiously fun.

Etherpad

Welcome to MoPad!

This pad text is synchronized as you type, so that everyone viewing this page sees the same text.  This allows you to collaborate seamlessly on documents!

Example

                                                                                                 


Natural Reader - reading out text

NaturalReader is a Text to Speech software with natural sounding voices. This software can read to you any text such as Microsoft Word files, webpages, PDF files, and E-mails. NaturalReader can also convert any written text into             audio files such as MP3 or WAV for your CD player / iPod.

New Beginnings!

I am lucky enough to be beginning a new job working as a e-Learning facilitator in an online role for CORE Education.

I am very excited by the opportunities it offers and all the wonderfully inspiring people I have already met.

This will be my new blog to record my thoughts, reflections, successes and frustrations. : )