Category: 2) Useful n Interesting
Pixlr ~ Photo Editing
One of our most used photo editors because of its power, and simplicity, Pixlr, is a useful tool in many contexts. Make changes, apply special effects, borders, colour changes & more, until chuffed with your masterpiece. Free and easy.
The Pixlr Editor, and the Express Editor, are complemented by the Pixlr-o-Matic. There are also apps for iPhone and Android devices. Pixellent!
Sonja Weed ~ OUTSTANDING ~ Thinking out of the box
We had an OFSTED inspection and I was being observed doing literacy by the inspector and by the head. The premise was that a mysterious parcel arrived in the classroom marked “do not open” “top secret” “danger”. Oh the FUN we had passing it round, shaking it, smelling it – trying to decide WHAT it could be. At this point, the head and inspector were NOT in the room.
The kids were climbing the walls when we decided to open up the box, in which was a threat from some spies who had been watching us (CIA – a letter written with an official Whitehouse letterhead).
They had heard that the teacher (AKA – me) had stumbled upon a secret plant testing facility (the previous day’s lesson, which included some great video as stimulus) and unless the children wrote some detailed descriptions of the plants there would be serious consequences…
So usual vocab a-la Tim Rylands style illicitation ensues (head and inspector now arrive) and the kids wrote the most AMAZING descriptions. So, the rest of the lesson ran really well.
I knew it was OUtstanding, support staff knew it was outstanding, my head said it was EASILY Outstanding but the OFSTED man said it was Good, with elements of Outstanding.
The reason? The fact that I didn’t use ICT as the stimulus instead of the box – he said it should have come as an email or a text.
No matter what we argued, he wouldn’t have it!! The WHOLE lesson, all the resources etc etc came out of that box. The whole reason the kids wanted to write was because of the BOX -an email just would NOT have done it!
So my point is (sorry for rambling on!) that somewhere, the function of ICT got lost in translation. Somewhere, people are forgetting that it doesn’t HAVE to be in every lesson, sometimes slate and chalk do just as well.
I know you agree, I just wanted to give you a real life example 
Thank you for sending this thoughtful, thought provoking, post Sonja. We were blessed to work alongside you, back in your days at Diocesan and Payne Smith School, in Canterbury, and we have followed your amazing exploits in imaginative, creative, powerful, use of technology. Folk might like to read your post about some of the things that flowed from your Myst III:Exile based project.
It is even more remarkable, then, to find that someone who values, (as you said, in the same way as we do) the remarkable things that can come from a cross between analog and digital experiences, got utterly misunderstood by someone who should be open to quality learning in ANY form.
Well done you, and we would like to wish you all the best in your new venture, and pastures new, and The Whitstable Cake Company. The world of education has lost a remarkable teacher, and learner…
The analog, and digital, world has gained a remarkable mind, mum, and inspirer. Go for it!
Harry Potter’s Renaissance Science, Magic & Medicine
Designed to accompany the Harry Potter Exhibition, organised by the US National Library of Medicine, the Online Education Resources are a touch of magic in their own right.
Follow the clues, to discover similarities between Harry’s fictional world and ours. Investigate the Potions section and find answers to things such as the difference between the Sorcerer’s Stone and the Philosopher’s Stone, and what Nicolas Flamel was really famous in history?
Examine the historical records in the Monsters section and find answers to investigate The Monster Book of Monsters that Hagrid used to teach the Care of Magical Creatures class in Hogwarts, and the creatures and monsters that Gesner’s Historiae Animalium included.
Mandrake is used in a potion for un-petrification in Harry Potter. Find out what Mandrake was used for historically in the Herbology section.
“There was a lot more to magic, as Harry quickly found out, than waving your wand & saying a few funny words.”
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, J. K. Rowling
Some practical and fun science experiments
In Home Experiments from scifun.org, science, and a bit of magic, work together to create some fascinating learning opportunities.
Investigate the science behind floating soap bubbles, explore acids & alkalis with red cabbage, do some wizardry using Bernoulli’s Principle, or bend water using static.
Each experiment is set out in a very clear way, including a list of necessary equipment (most of which can be found easily), some safety tips, and a look at the science principles behind what happens, and why.
Peanut Gallery Films ~ Inter Titles come alive
In old, black and white, films intertitles were used to convey some ikmportant elements of the film’s message to the audience. Text, which appeared in the middle of a filmed scene, would share a character’s dialogue, or describe something about the plot, to keep the film goers up to speed.
Peanut Gallery is a Chrome Experiment that lets you add intertitles to old film clips using your voice, then share those clips with your friends. It uses your computer’s microphone and the Web Speech API in Google Chrome to turn speech into text.
In old cinemas, the Peanut Gallery was a place of great mirth, and rumbustious merriment. What other excuse do you need to go and get storytelling in a fascinating way?
Soundslice ~ Visual Tablature
If you, or your students, are learning guitar tabs, Sound Slice gives the chance to watch, listen, rehearse, and play in a clever way.Tabs have never sounded so good.
Sound Slice lets you sync tabs with video so you can see (and hear!) them in real time. Try “100 Riffs~ A Brief History of Rock n Roll“, or strum along with Django, in “I’ll See You In My Dreams”.
You can even slow the whole process down, to give you a chance of keeping up!
EdHeads
Edheads is an online educational resource that provides free science and maths games and activities that promote critical thinking. Choose from Simple Machines, predicting the weather, or even take on the role of a surgeon throughout a total knee replacement surgery! Analytical thinking, problem solving, and some interesting learning.
Perhaps start by Designing A Cell Phone. In this challenge, you get to think about key elements when designing for a specific audience, in this case senior citizens? Engineers have to understand the implications of designing products and systems for people that are not identical to themselves. This offers the chance to plan, test, analyse, and review thinking, and design, processes.
A soft sound board
With this sound board you could create a calming sonic atmosphere within your classroom. Mix the relative levels, and panned position, of different sounds, from a choice of birdsong, bonfire, creek, crickets, gulls, ocean, rain, thunder, and wind chime sound effects, & music. Sound!
Gewoon Speciaal ~ What a day!
Two months ago we were invited to go to the IPON conference for ‘Gewoon Speciaal’ Simply Special, that happened on Wednesday April 10th. Nothing special for so far, you might think, but because my students (with special educational needs) in coordination with the Social Media Circle, ICT&E, some of them could go with me to make it really special.
At the first meeting we heard about your participation, so I warmed up my kids and began to think about our interpretation for the day.
Four of my enthusiastic pupils came up with the idea to make an Animoto. We had worked with it in the Social Media Circle, so that could be a good way to present.
Four kids, from my colleague Erik Lagraauw’s class, could come to the convention. In the Circle, his students worked with video camera and interviewing, so that would be their involvement. Continue Reading
Stich.it ~ Gathering elements together in a flowing slideshow
Stich.it is a service that lets you “stich” almost anything together on the Internet. Quickly create a slideshow-like experience that can include Web pages, video, music, photos and more.
There is no limit to the number of elements you can “stich” together, and you end up with a single, short, URL which contains all of the things you have gathered. (Go careful as you can’t edit afterwards, yet).
Try this Stich on the basics of Stiching, or this one on drawing comics, or make one of your own.
The word “stich” means a line of poetry, & that’s a good metaphor for what they are trying to achieve. Poetry in motion
Project Noah
Project Noah is a tool to explore and document wildlife. It was created to provide people of all ages with a simple, easy-to-use way to share their experiences with nature. You, & your, students can investigate, & contribute to, Project Noah missions.
Once you’re registered as a teacher, you can create a new place-based mission for your students: a challenge to document the world around them, and understand the importance of biodiversity, as well. We’d love to Noah-bout what you discover.
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
