How might we use google apps and web2.0 tools?

Monday, September 20, 2010

How might we use google docs and web 2.0 tools?

The group spent some time looking at how we might use google docs and web 2.0 tools. We came up with some collaborative ideas for within the classroom, and looked at resources that could be embedded into our LMS to support parents at home.

Tuesday, September 14, 2010

Resources for ICT PD

Into the book - an interactive website which focuses explicitly on reading strategies.

http://reading.ecb.org/

Thursday, June 10, 2010

Thoughts on blog use

Had a great discussion with the ICT PD team yesterday about how we are working with all the new ICT tools at our disposal within the classroom, and clarifying their purpose. Within our ICT PLG we have been looking at using blogs to create authentic audiences for our writing.

As part of our journey, we have explored how we can build an audience and obtain quality feedback for student writing. This has taken us down the road of posting success criteria to allow the audience an opportunity to think critically about the text in relation to the purpose for which it was written. This has proved to be successful, but very much starts to step on the toes of what is trying to be achieved with Mahara.

During the ICT PD team discussion, we had a chance to discuss the way forward for the use of the class blog. It was agreed upon that Mahara, rather than a class blog would be the way forward for publishing student work that requires feedback in an academic/mechanics/success criteria sense. Instead, the class blog will carry out the more traditional role of a blog (short for web log). The class blog will be more about commentary, opinion and response. Posts could be about what is happening in the classroom, what is going on in the world, thoughts about what is going on around the school.

From the perspective of trying to create authentic audiences for student writing, this type of writing if done properly has the capacity to open strings of discussion between the student and audience through the commentary, opinion and response of the audience itself. This of course gives purpose to the students' writing. It also creates a teaching opportunity for students to learn how to write as an audience member, effectively using blog writing and the etiquette involved as a genre in itself.

Food for thought. What do you think team?

Monday, June 7, 2010

Link your blog to facebook and twitter

No idea how it works but it is pretty cool and really easy to do. Go to www.twitterfeed.com and set up and account. Then follow the instructions and choose where your posts get sent to. You can find your RSS feed by looking at the bottom of your blog for the subscribe to: Posts (Atom).
If you click on Posts it will give you the feed address.

Friday, June 4, 2010

Imogen found a useful blog instruction blog with step by step instructions on setting things up.

Monday, May 24, 2010

Links to class blogs

Hi guys,

For ease of access, I've added links to all the class blogs of the contributors to this blog. They can be found at the top of this blog on the right hand side, under 'Our Class Blogs'.

Authentic Audience

Hi all,

I was really pleased with how well things worked out with Gemma's class blog in trying to develop authentic audiences.

With much of the work that has been put on class blogs thus far, audiences have struggled to add comments beyond 'well done' and 'great stuff'. By outlining the purpose and success criteria for the writing, Gemma has enabled the audience to offer feedback that is much more valuable than an acknowledgement of effort.

Check it out on her blog http://tisgoldfinch.blogspot.com.

Wednesday, May 5, 2010

Marvin as a Tutorial

The Tawa Intermediate School Good Guys used Marvin to create a tutorial explaining why they made a new rubbish enclosure and have invented a rubbish collection solution for the school. After an initial introduction, the students were able to manipulate the programme fairly well with increasing independence. The video can be found at the bottom of the blog.

Friday, April 30, 2010

Video

Hi all. Videos are easily added to a blog by choosing the little film strip icon when adding a new post. I've put an example on of Lizzy explaining the 'doubling and halving' multiplication strategy for maths. It was taken on a normal digital camera and saved on my computer before adding. :-)

Thursday, April 29, 2010

Blogger Design

Check out these links. They have up to date guidelines on how to create and amend your blog design and lots of new templates.

http://bloggerindraft.blogspot.com/
http://bloggerindraft.blogspot.com/2010/03/blogger-template-designer.html

Monday, April 26, 2010

I've been playing with the Marvin tool. It's quite fun. Does anyone know how to get a Marvin video you've made onto a blog?

Monday, April 5, 2010

Promote your Blog

1. Visit other blogs, sign up to follow or leave comments. It is blogging manners to reciprocate visits and comments.

2. Add labels to your blogs. For instance if you label something with John Key there is a good chance it will be read by someone in his office.

3. Put links on your twitter, facebook, myspace etc pages

4. Set up RSS feeds. Details at http://www.rss-specifications.com/rss-submission.htm

5. Sign up to promotion websites. NZ ones are:
http://blogroll.co.nz
http://www.madefromnewzealand.com/blog/room-3-blog-tawa-intermediate-school
http://www.nzs.com/media/blogs/

6. Make links to education websites which will promote your blog:
http://nzedublogs.wikispaces.com/
http://www.nz-interface.co.nz/teacherblogs/
http://nz.loadedweb.com/search/blogs/education/

Hints and tips for Blogging

Things that I have found useful in my blogging journey.

This blog gives updates on the Blogger Template Designer and Blogger Draft, both of which will make it easier to customise your blog.
http://bloggerindraft.blogspot.com


For a good visitor list use this website. Be careful how you sign up as the categories you choose will dictate the type of site your vistors will be linked to from your blog.
http://www.geovisite.com/en/directory/news_television.php

For great and easy slide shows use this site.
www.slide.com

Free surveys and quizzes.
http://www.xat.com/web_gear/?quiz=1

To add other gadgets with embed codes follow these instructions:
1. customize
2. add gadget
3. HTML/Java Script (Click on the plus sign)
4. Paste embed code

Wednesday, March 31, 2010

Our Priorities

Our PLG have decided on our priorities for what we want to achieve this year:
1. Develop an understanding of the relationship between Google Apps, Google Accounts, Blogger and how they work.
2. Develop a set of guidelines for working on blogs / Google Apps
3. Establish blogs within classrooms as a way of giving students authentic audiences for their writing
4. Explore the use of Web 2.0 as tools for developing student tutorials
5. Explore the use of Google Docs as a collaborative tool for learning

Tuesday, March 30, 2010

Marvin as a tutorial tool

At the bottom of this blog is an example of how the Marvin programme can be used. The programme was developed in the Northern Territory and has been backed by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, making it free to schools. TIS has a network licence and it will be available for all teachers to try in the classroom. I think the programme has real potential as a tool for students building tutorials and instructional texts. The avatar feature is fantastic in instances where there are issues around student images being recorded. The example at the bottom of this page took about 5 minutes to put together. The programme is very user friendly, I highly recommend you give it a go!

Thursday, March 25, 2010

Welcome!

Welcome to the blog of the Tawa Intermediate School Web 2.0 & Google Apps ICT Professional Learning Group. We are a group of teachers exploring ideas such as how Web 2.0 tools can be used in the classroom for promoting learning, using blogs to provide authentic audiences for writing, and using Google Docs as a collaborative learning tool. We will be using this blog as a forum for sharing ideas and reflecting on learning experiences.