This may "out" me as a total dork, but today marks the fifth day of my summer going into work, simply because I want to be a better teacher for my kiddos this year. Nobody goes into teaching for the money, and I found it really neat that one of the speakers today said that teaching is a calling, almost like someone who is called to serve in the church. That really hit the nail right on the head for me! As much as I love my summer and truly believe teachers deserve to be paid and respected more than they are by many people, I absolutely CANNOT wait to get back to school this year, see those bright, shining faces of my students, help those light-bulbs go off as students learn how to count and read and experiment. Plus, total props in this video of Matt Damon sticking up for teachers to a rude reporter/cameraman combo.WARNING: he swears in the video.
Voki - Choose a cartoon character, then either record your voice, or type the words you would like your cartoon character to speak aloud.
Voicethread - Input photos or drawings, and then children can record voice to go along with the slides. The neatest part is that teachers can set up a whole class of student accounts, who can easily all record their comments onto the same voicethread.
Poll Everywhere - Create a poll and share with friends. People can participate through web, twitter, or text!
Go Animate - Choose a setting and characters, and then type the dialogue to make your own video. What a great way for kids to take storytelling and imagination to the next level!
Glogster - A new spin on a Power Point. Create a neat, colorful "poster" to display photos, videos, and text. This is a great way to let your kids display information on a topic they love.
BrainPop App for iPhone or iPad - A really fun and educational video for children to watch, with a new video every day! Plus this app is free!
I love that clip of Matt Damon. I always loved him, but now I do even more :) I have a bunch of great teachers that I follow either on their blog/twitter/facebook :) They have lots of great ideas and tons of tips on using technology! I will share their info with you if you are interested!
ReplyDeleteI too am excited to get back to school. Partly because I have a new room and a new program to institute, but also because that mean the summer went fast and this deployment is getting closer to being done! :) Good luck with getting your classroom together! I was on vacation last week and am headed in to my room today!
Amanda
@Q Devil Dogs
ReplyDeleteGood luck in your new classroom! I have become an addict to teaching blogs lately! Now I have to stop saving ideas and start DOING them LOL! Thanks for commenting :)