OK so the first time I tried to animate, I almost cried. I also discovered that I have NO imagination what so ever!!! I was watching the tutorials and it was not going well. I put it away for the day. I opened it up the next day, finished watching the tutorials and...done! It was so not as bad as I thought the day before. So being the genius that I am, I didn't read the instructions about what the animation needed to be about. So I animated a race between a chicken and kangaroo that was led by a rabbit. I finished it and...if I may say so....it looks good. Too bad no one will see it or grade it for that matter. So again....at the computer for the animation that is now for educational purpose. I finally decided that I would do one to introduce some vocabulary for a unit on ecology. So now it is done. The only thing that I would improve on about the software that I used is that it needs more sounds. I'm sure I could have imported them from somewhere, but that is a whole other lesson!
What I did like about Alice was that it was very straight forward. Once you watched the tutorials, you can catch on to things. After a while I actually got into it. I wanted to make the rabbit move his tail only or make rabbit sounds, but I never figured out how to move only the tail and there were not any rabbit sounds. I wanted to make the saliva out of the wolf's mouth drip, but I was unable to do that either. I wish this wasn't a 30 day free trial, because I could use this in class alot. I could have students animate and then write stories for each creation. I could have them then write stories for other's creations. They could also animate using all vocabulary words in a unit as they tell a story. It has great potential. The students would love it because it allows them to be creative. All in all, I learned that if I lose my patience, to leave it alone for a while, and I learned how to animate for my classes.
Thursday, June 25, 2009
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Creating an audio file
Ok well, it was not as easy or as hard as I thought it was going to be. I tried a couple of different programs. the first was sent to me in school, but I decided to use the Camtasia software to upload everything onto the blog. I'm just excited that it worked! I can now upload all of my tests onto the blog and have students access them at school! That is exciting. I'll have to find a way to hide them though so they can't get to them early. It only took about 10 minutes to record the test into the computer and after that I just figured out how to make the audio sound better by quieting the outside noise and that was it! Not too bad....
now if only my school didn't have a heavy filter so that I could put my blog up. I have a plan though. I am going to use the thoughts.com blogging site because that is not filtered out.
Haven't gotten the animation done yet...that one is a little more intense.
now if only my school didn't have a heavy filter so that I could put my blog up. I have a plan though. I am going to use the thoughts.com blogging site because that is not filtered out.
Haven't gotten the animation done yet...that one is a little more intense.
Shining Star test audio file
Here is the actual audio file for the test.....
Unit 1 PArt 1 Shining Star Test
This is the link to the Shining Star from Mediafire. It will lead you to download the mp3.
http://www.mediafire.com/?en0gzent2nr
Unit 1 PArt 1 Shining Star Test
This is the link to the Shining Star from Mediafire. It will lead you to download the mp3.
http://www.mediafire.com/?en0gzent2nr
Thursday, June 18, 2009
Inspiration - Graphic Organizer
So I used Inspiration software to make my graphic organizer and LOVED it! Too bad we don't have that sfotware at school:(
I expanded on what the template showed. I added on the Executive and Judicial Branches to go with the Legislative branch. Upon first use, some of the buttons were a little confusing, but if you have time to play with it, it will be great. I would totally use it. I printed it off so I can have my students duplicate it on their own paper. We use so many graphic organizers it would be great to have this at school!! I'll put it on my list for the director.
I expanded on what the template showed. I added on the Executive and Judicial Branches to go with the Legislative branch. Upon first use, some of the buttons were a little confusing, but if you have time to play with it, it will be great. I would totally use it. I printed it off so I can have my students duplicate it on their own paper. We use so many graphic organizers it would be great to have this at school!! I'll put it on my list for the director.
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Lesson Accelerator - Newsflash - MS Word
Newsflash
Newsflash is a newspaper where students write about a concept in newspaper format to present information. I would use this for both my ELA and Social Studies classes. First of all it encompasses different ways of writing. The student could write from different points of view including characters in stories or a person from a different time period. The teacher could also have them write editorials about events or personal reactions to events or stories. The students would also have to write a summary for the newspaper giving a short description of what happened. There were other options for background information or other research the student may have done on the topic, depending on how big the paper is. Another aspect about this project is that it requires you to cite the pictures the student gets off the internet. Students are not giving appropriate credit in school and this will make them more aware of this need. This project would cover many of the TEKS used in ELA.
I would not modify this particular version of Newsflash, but I might create my own using the different ways of writing mentioned above depending on whether I was doing a project for Social Studies or ELA. I would, before the lesson, have newspapers around the room so students could see what a real newspaper looks like. If I were going to use this for a WWII project I might see if there were actual newspapers I could buy on eBay for their viewing. I could also have students research a topic and actually find a newspaper article online or in the library about their chosen topic. I would have to take some time to show students how to create text boxes and set the paper up with more of a newspaper feel which could take some time. Other than changing the type of writing for different subjects, I would not change anything.
Any subject would be able to use Newsflash. It can be applied to Science, any ELA, and Social Studies, as well as Math. ESL students are required to write for all classes for the TELPAS test in February. This would get them thinking about ways to write about each subject which would help their writing scores in the long run. If I were to use this in a staff development, I would have the departments by grade level go to the lab and come up with their own newspaper to use as an example in class for their students.
Newsflash is a newspaper where students write about a concept in newspaper format to present information. I would use this for both my ELA and Social Studies classes. First of all it encompasses different ways of writing. The student could write from different points of view including characters in stories or a person from a different time period. The teacher could also have them write editorials about events or personal reactions to events or stories. The students would also have to write a summary for the newspaper giving a short description of what happened. There were other options for background information or other research the student may have done on the topic, depending on how big the paper is. Another aspect about this project is that it requires you to cite the pictures the student gets off the internet. Students are not giving appropriate credit in school and this will make them more aware of this need. This project would cover many of the TEKS used in ELA.
I would not modify this particular version of Newsflash, but I might create my own using the different ways of writing mentioned above depending on whether I was doing a project for Social Studies or ELA. I would, before the lesson, have newspapers around the room so students could see what a real newspaper looks like. If I were going to use this for a WWII project I might see if there were actual newspapers I could buy on eBay for their viewing. I could also have students research a topic and actually find a newspaper article online or in the library about their chosen topic. I would have to take some time to show students how to create text boxes and set the paper up with more of a newspaper feel which could take some time. Other than changing the type of writing for different subjects, I would not change anything.
Any subject would be able to use Newsflash. It can be applied to Science, any ELA, and Social Studies, as well as Math. ESL students are required to write for all classes for the TELPAS test in February. This would get them thinking about ways to write about each subject which would help their writing scores in the long run. If I were to use this in a staff development, I would have the departments by grade level go to the lab and come up with their own newspaper to use as an example in class for their students.
Lesson Accelerator - Legislative Branch - Inspiration
The Legislative Branch for Inspiration
This was a government graphic organizer that divided the three parts of the Legislative Branch in Inspiration. I could use this in my classroom for my ESL newcomers because it minimizes the amount of information and condenses it onto one page. It is great that symbols or pictures can be used in place of words, colors can be changed for ease of understanding differences, and outlines are formed based on information input onto the web. Also, both the outline and the graphic organizer can be printed so it applies to different learning styles. If a student is more linear the outline is available to them for studying. In class I also like the fact that I can create links to web pages where I want my students to look for information. It is difficult when they are all over the internet because there is sometimes too much information for them to have. I think this is a great tool for organizing notes in order.
I would modify this organizer by placing in each box of text what I want included there. I would also add text boxes where needed before giving the organizer to the students. I might also have them add text boxes based on what they thought was important enough to add into the organizer. I would also modify this organizer to show all branches of government. I think that would be more comprehensive. They would have all the information on one page.
I would present this to the staff at my school explaining that they could use this in Science, ELA, or any other subject. I believe that it could be geared toward science by talking about ecosystems possibly. For reading or English teachers it would be appropriate for character differentiation or plotting stories from beginning to end. I would also let them know that it would be a good tool to help a struggling writer begin because it gives them all the information they would just have to separate it into paragraphs and possibly add more details. It would at least give them a starting point. This graphic organizer would be a great culminating project instead of a test because the student has to fill it in using his own language and not by chance bubbling the correct answer on a scantron. The teacher would really know whether or not the student understood the material because of how they input the information.
This was a government graphic organizer that divided the three parts of the Legislative Branch in Inspiration. I could use this in my classroom for my ESL newcomers because it minimizes the amount of information and condenses it onto one page. It is great that symbols or pictures can be used in place of words, colors can be changed for ease of understanding differences, and outlines are formed based on information input onto the web. Also, both the outline and the graphic organizer can be printed so it applies to different learning styles. If a student is more linear the outline is available to them for studying. In class I also like the fact that I can create links to web pages where I want my students to look for information. It is difficult when they are all over the internet because there is sometimes too much information for them to have. I think this is a great tool for organizing notes in order.
I would modify this organizer by placing in each box of text what I want included there. I would also add text boxes where needed before giving the organizer to the students. I might also have them add text boxes based on what they thought was important enough to add into the organizer. I would also modify this organizer to show all branches of government. I think that would be more comprehensive. They would have all the information on one page.
I would present this to the staff at my school explaining that they could use this in Science, ELA, or any other subject. I believe that it could be geared toward science by talking about ecosystems possibly. For reading or English teachers it would be appropriate for character differentiation or plotting stories from beginning to end. I would also let them know that it would be a good tool to help a struggling writer begin because it gives them all the information they would just have to separate it into paragraphs and possibly add more details. It would at least give them a starting point. This graphic organizer would be a great culminating project instead of a test because the student has to fill it in using his own language and not by chance bubbling the correct answer on a scantron. The teacher would really know whether or not the student understood the material because of how they input the information.
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