Author Archive: Tim
Today’s Meet
Today’s Meet is designed as a place to create a “back channel” during an event, such as a meeting, or conference. It can make a good way to encourage, and record, communication in a learning environment too.
A potentially useful way to gather thoughts, and ideas, in a collaborative way. At the moment TodaysMeet is open, so anybody could contribute. This means you need to consider WHO might add in from “outside”, but it is unlikely to attract people who you haven’t given the URL to, and Today’s Meet does not publish a list of active rooms. Give it a go.
St Silas Church of England Primary, Toxteth, Liverpool ~ Day 1
The first of two days, working alongside the staff, and pupils, of St Silas Church of England Primary School, Toxteth, Liverpool, accompanied by colleagues from the surrounding area.
The St Silas school motto is “Learning caring and sharing together; and the main thing is…Learning!” And, what remarkable learning they already do.
Thank you to Jonathon Nichols, Head Teacher and Deputy Head Teacher, Gina Donaldson, for inviting us. Continue Reading
Draft ~ make changes, without losing changes, for a change
In many online text editing programs, where, when you make a change, that’s it ~ the change is made everywhere.
When you share your document using Draft, any changes your collaborator makes are on their own copy of the document, and you get to accept or ignore each individual change they make. Easy version control and collaboration. Have a look at some of the other features here.
Senduit ~ Time limited file sharing
Senduit is a free, disposable, file sharing service. Choose how long you want your file to be available, (from 30 minutes, to a week), send someone the link (with a nudge about how long they have to download it). After your set time period, the URL expires.
Senduit doesn’t require a sign up, or for you to install anything, and enables up to 100mb of file sharing. Useful when sending a large file to a specific, recipient, or in a time based challenge too? On your marks. Get your resources. Go!
Memplai ~ Collaborative Video Editing
Memplai is a useful video editing tool, and one that can even be used in a collaborative fashion, similar to WeVideo, mentioned in this post.
Memplai It does require a sign up, but is free to use, including group editing, and sharing of your results. The user interface is quite easy to master too.
The Answer Pad ~ Setting questions …free
The Answer Pad is a great, FREE, way of creating questions (in many styles), gathering answers, and keeping a track of the results. Use the reporting system for item analysis, reports by skill, by class, by student. Setting questions free.
Choose from 8 different question types: Numberwheel, Fill in, Pie Shade-In, Rectangle Shade-In, Co-ordinate Grid, Multiple-Choice, Yes/No, and True/False. Students can also show their “working outs” on the scratch pad.
Teachers register for FREE at TheAnswerPad.com. Students either download TAPit Free iPad app or log in at TheAnswerPad.com to use the browser version on any device/tablet.
The free version allows a teacher to set up one class with 36 students.
The new Go Interactive component of The Answer Pad allows teachers to engage their students by “pushing” out different response types to the class. The students submit their responses and the teacher dashboard displays a great visual of all the students responses on one screen. The best part about Go Interactive is the fact that, since teachers are not typing in questions, or making slides and presentations, there is almost no preparation needed to use this tool in the classroom. The Go Interactive feature is currently only available with the TAPit Free app. A browser version is “coming soon“.
Use the answer sheet feature for summative assessments, quizzes and tests and get immediate reporting, or the Go Interactive for formative assessment to drive lesson sessions.
A cross-platform, easy to master, tool, and a chance to go way beyond multiple choice?
ICT to Inspire, Kirkby 2.2 ~ Kirkby Sports College
Our second event in this return trip to work alongside the great staff from schools in The Kirkby Collaborative. Today, we had a secondary focus, spending time with colleagues, and students, from Kirkby Sports College.
What a great bunch! We started with some analog responses to a digital stimulus ~ some more wandering in the world of words. The students showed some imaginative, inventive flair.
One of the most enjoyable sessions, with children of a secondary age. Why? Many reasons, but one of the most important factors, most definitely, was how courageous these students were. In other words, they showed remarkable, shared, confidence, in allowing mistakes, and moving on from them. Let’s make better mistakes – tomorrow” Continue Reading
Domo Animation Studio
Domo Animation Studio, is a chance to create your own adventures in minutes. Add scenes, FX, sound effects, & music.
ExploraTree ~ Branching out with thinking
Exploratree is a free web resource where you can access a library of ready-made interactive thinking guides, print them, edit them or make your own. You can share them and work on them in groups too.
The Exploratree web resource has been developed by Futurelab and emerged out of their work on the Enquiring Minds project.
It provides a series of ready-made interactive ‘thinking guides’ or ‘frameworks’ which can support students’ projects and research.
Exploratree guides can be used as a basis for whole class discussion. They can also be used as a presentation tool to share your findings and thinking with others.
As well as providing a set of ready to use thinking guides, which are completely customisable and shareable, Exploratree also enables teachers and students to create their own simply and easily.
A solid root (!), and basis, in thinking processes. As things grow (!) and you’re knot (!) stumped (!) yew (!) could spruce (!) things up, branch out (!) and design your own thinking structures. Very poplar (!). What are you waiting fir? (!) Don’t leave (!) anything out. Tree-mendous!
Generator ~ Moving Image Storyboard Creator
Generator is a creative studio space, designed by The Australian Centre For The Moving Image (ACMI) where you can explore the moving image, be inspired, create your own moving image works and share your creations.
Find out more about what you can do on this site, by visiting About the Project.
It is free, and quick, to register with Generator. By registering, you will be able to download and access thousands of copyright-free images, video footage and audio sfx from the Free Media Library. You will also be able to upload and share your creative work both to the Video Gallery and to the Free Media Library. You can also save and share your storyboards created with the Storyboard Generator. Experiment with such things as variety of camera shots, & transfers.
By moderating content, ACMI make sure that all users can enjoy the site with the understanding that the content that is contributed is safe and does not breach privacy or any other legal concerns.
The content on Generator is designed primarily for students in Year 7 to 11.
Younger students in Years 5 to 6 will also enjoy the content. Occasionally, there will be video content that is best suited to an older audience. If this is the case, a note will appear for teachers and parents in the video synopsis.
As well as our events, we like to share interesting, and more often than not, FREE tools, resources and ideas, some old, some new, and we hope you might find something useful. We'd love your thoughts. Tim & Sarah
