Tiffany+Schaefer's+Cool+Tools+Reviews+Reflections+and+Application+Plan

Going Multimodal with Xtranormal and Voki **Session 1~Tuesday** Review and reflection: The cool tools in this session were about creating avatars to present information. In the Voki you can create up to one minute of text. There are many characters, backgrounds, and voice accents to choose from. During the presentation we were able to view example Vokis and Xtranormal videos. I had some background in Voki but wanted to know more about Xtranormal. I spent my "play time" exploring how to create a video using the diverse characters and backgrounds available. I came across some over exposed avatars, therefore, I probably will not use this program because I might have some parent complaints.

Using Voki in the classroom: I will be using Voki in my classroom. I was thinking about using it at the beginning of the year for students to create an avatar that represents them to show the class, sort of an ice breaker. Another way I will use Voki is to summarize text. It can be used to summarize short stories, a chapter in a novel, or a video. Thirdly, I will use this cool tool for students to show what they know about characters from a story. For example, in the novel, //Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry,// there are many main characters. The studnets could pick a character and create a voki explain how they change throughout the story and character traits in the book.

Seeking Socrates with Duffle **Session 2~Tuesday** Review and reflection: Duffle is a organization tool to plan a trip to any place in the world. The tool has ways to add activities, locations, and to-do lists. At first I was wondering how it was relevant to my content area. Then I realized a connection to a novel study. One major downfall to this program that it would require students to have an email address to sign up. It seems more of a secondary ed activity.

Using Dufle in the classroom: If I used this program in the classroom I could have as a plot activity for the novel The Lightning Thief. In the novel the main characters travel across the US on an adventure. Groups could create a duffle about the journey and stops the characters experienced. I emailed information about duffelup to teachers that teach SS at my school. There are a few teach savvy teachers who will love this site=)

Turning SSR into RSS **Session 1~Wednesday** The session showed how SSR is important, but it is not always enough to motivate and, at times, there might be classroom management problems. RSS is a Google tool that allows teachers and students to get news and other nonfiction text sent to their Google account. The sites can be catered to student interest and promote ownership during SSR. The instructor was comical and informative. He had great examples how it worked in his own class.

Using RSS in my classroom: I like the idea about using this in stations due to only having two student computers. I can't require the students to have email addresses so I could create three or four accounts and have them ready when we travel to the media center every two weeks. I plan on giving each student an interest survey at the beginning of the year so that I know what they want to read.

@Collaborative Literacy : Using Free Google Tools to Turn Your Classroom into a Thriving Learning Community **Session 2~Wednesday** This session was about creating google websites and custom searches for student projects. I feel like this is a updated tool similar to a webquest. Again, students would need to have their own email addresses, therefore, I would only use it as a tool for creating a project website. There are ways to be selective when choosing websites the students have available to view. One negative was that there are several adds that pop up at the top of the search that the teacher does not have a choice in having.

The session made the tool look simple to use. We contemplated what tools to use for my group's PBI project. At first we were going to use Weebly.com to create a website, a program that we were very familiar with. But, we wanted to get out of our tech comfort zone so we chose to use google sites as our place for our project. We came into some problems when we were creating new pages. I see this being a cool tool when teachers want to filter a search but still allow students to use search engines.

GlogsterEdu: Hook, Line, & Sinker : Session 1 ~ Thursday I love Glogster! It is an online poster that students can create projects using sub accounts under the teacher's account. It is extra cool because the students do not need to have their own email to use this site. The free account only allows for fifty students, but teachers can write PTA grants or ask for parent donations to get the full account. Glog's features include uploading pictures, linking websites, uploading video and podcast, and adding text. There is a wide range of graphics available on the site.

Glogster in the classroom: I will use glogster in my classroom for various applications. One way that I can think of is creating one pager for book project. After reading a novel, students will learn and discuss theme. Keeping the theme in mind students will research a central image to put in the middle of the glog. Next, they will come up with four statements using the text box feature that explain the theme. Then, the student will add more text boxes to include a quote, create questions, add a personal connection to the novel. Students then can add graphics and links that will jazz up their glog.

Classroom Literacy Learning: What's the Wii Got to Do with it? This session was about how game based learning can be used in the classroom including the wii. The wii is a tool for all ages that allows you to move and interact with the game. Most games require critical thinking skills to pass levels. The class debated the relevance of using it in the classroom today. I see an immediate use for it in the physical education class. However, until there are more content specific games I don't see a use in my Language Arts class. I do see how it could be used in an after school club or elective on game-based learning.