Sharing Personal Narratives with iMovie

10/2013

My class is so lucky to have 1-1 iPads.  Too bad the students aren't in the hands of a teacher who is proficient at integrating them into our daily classroom life!  It's true - I have a lot to learn.  BUT I am motivated and I'm always looking for ways to improve.

I'm committed to trying to find new ways to use the iPads.  My first strategy was to implement Tech Tuesdays.  Students are invited to come in during lunch recess on Tuesday for app discovery.  Together we explore and learn about the apps already loaded on their iPads.  We can explore and learn together.  The best part, however,  is that they become digital leaders in the class! It's a win-win!

On our first Tech Tuesday I asked the small handful of students who arrived to explore iMovie.  We were just about to finish publishing our personal narratives using Google Docs. The kids really wanted to share their stories with each other using QR Codes. I decided to add in the  iMovie presentation.  Using iMovie allows the students to show the documentation of all their work that went into the final draft of their narrative.  

Here's how I went about the project.

Step 1: Document their work 

The students took pictures of the work they did in their reading journal, their drafts, etc. to share their process.

Step 2: Record voice

Thankfully the noise canceling headphones made this a much easier task.  This was harder than it was supposed to be for some kids.  I had to work with them on not feeling the need to hold the iPad and their narrative in their hands as they read aloud.  Once they felt comfortable leaving the iPad on a flat surface and not looking at while they read, the process got a lot easier.

Step 3: Edit photos

One thing we had to manage was the "Ken Burns Effect". It is possible to turn this effect off on a laptop/desktop computer, but on the iPad you can't turn it off. So, you have to manage it for each picture.   It took us some time to figure this out. The apple website was incredibly helpful.  

Step 4: Insert titles on photos

This is was a cool step. The students were able to put a title on each picture noting what part of the process was being shown.  So, they labeled pictures with "pre-writing" or "draft" or "revising".  

Step 5: Upload to school's YouTube site

This was new to me and took many trips to the school tech team. Now that I have done it once, the next time will be a LOT easier.

Sample iMovie Narrative

Step 6: Share URL's on class webpage

For this I just copied and pasted the YouTube Url onto our class webpage. This allows all the students and parents to each other's iMovie presentations.

Step 7: Print QR codes for students to display on bulletin board.

Athough I think the kids could do this on the iPads, I ran out of time for completing this, so I just did this task myself. I used the website QRstuff.com. Super easy but it did take a little time.

The kids did an amazing job and took the task seriously.  The number one blessing for this project was the delivery of noise-cancelling headphones for each child.  The headphones have a microphone which really helps manage the noise level with all the kids working at the same time.  

Things I have learned for next time:

1) After the students take pictures, go back into "Photos" and edit BEFORE inserting them into iMovie.  This was particularly important when a picture needed to be rotated.

2) It was easier for the students to record their whole paper in one sitting.  Some students broke up their recording into parts but most found that challenging.

3) Make sure the students don't have their last names anywhere in the story to protect privacy when published on YouTube.

Next steps:

1) organize their photos into albums so that they don't' have to spend so much time scrolling to find what they need.

This is a pretty easy process on the iPad and so necessary if they kids are taking lots of pictures. I think it will save considerable amounts of time when they are trying to sort through all the pictures they have taken with their iPad.

Although I found this project valuable, I am now thinking of different ways to make their thinking and writing process visible. I'm reading a book called Making Thinking Visible (Ritchhart, Church, Morrison) as part of Professional Learning Community at my new school.   On page 39, the authors state, "Documentation of students' thinking serves another important purpose in that it provides a stage from which both teachers and students may observe the learning process, make note of the strategies being used, and comment on the developing understanding.   ….documentation demystifies the learning process both for the individual as well as the group, building great meta cognitive awareness in the process."  

Documenting their writing process is a good step. But truly, to make the thinking visible, the students need to share what they did and how it helped them move through the writing process.  If we did this process again, I would have the students record what they were doing and why for each piece of documentation.  After sharing their process, they could add on a reading of their narrative.  

Carrie Strine
Sidwell Friends School
Grade 4 Teacher
theclassroommuddler.blogspot.com

"May I take your picture?" - iPad Photography in the Classroom

Last week we had another introductory lesson for iPad use with our First Grade students, which focused on taking pictures.  We started by discussing why we might need to take a photo of someone.  Perhaps the student might need an image of a person in the story he is writing.  Maybe she is creating a photo collage to demonstrate something learned.  Teachers want to have photos of students to document what is happening in the classroom.  There are so many reasons why we might need to take a picture at school.  Now with iPads in the classroom, it is ridiculously easy to take multiple photographs.

In the classroom – how do you make sure everyone is ok with the picture?  To demonstrate, the First Graders acted out several scenarios and we created a flow chart on the board. 

1. Ask the other person if you can take their picture.  If they say no – stop.  Go find another person and start over.

How often do teachers just start snapping away in class to document the activity? 

2.  If the other person says yes, take the picture, and then show it to the other person for approval.  If he doesn’t like it, retake the picture until it meets his approval.

I know as a teacher, I am often guilty of not doing this step.  When every child asks, “Can I see the picture?” I am thinking that I have 24 kids to photograph and showing each of them the picture will take time.  In reality, it isn’t too much time to show the picture and retake it if the child requests.  More often than not, children are happy with what they see!

3.  Once the picture is taken and approved, tell the other person what you are planning to do with it.  Then show them!

All of these steps may seem like very strict guidelines, but we are looking at a life lesson here.  If children can learn at this young age that they need to ask to first take then share someone’s image first, maybe then as these students get older, they will think twice before posting an embarrassing picture of their friend.

One of my goals for the year is to constantly be aware of when I am photographing the students in my class and letting them know.  I plan on telling the children that I am going to post the pictures to our class website and then showing it to them.  I was able to put this process in practice immediately as we made a grade wide movie trailer for a school assembly last week.  I had to explain to all 48 first graders what was happening, why we were photographing them and retaking several shots when students weren’t satisfied with the initial results.  It didn’t take as much time as I thought it would, and was a nice reminder to me that this is an important practice to demonstrate as we are asking the students to do the same thing.

iPads in the First Grade Classroom: Start of Year 2

We are starting Week 4 of school and already I can see a difference in the way we are integrating iPads into our classroom.  A main change I can see is that we are rolling things out slowly.  Last year, using iPads in the classroom was such a new idea, I felt that I had to just jump in and try things.  Many times, we had to scramble to figure out where to go next, or we completely failed in our attempts to use iPads in certain areas.  I spent countless hours thinking about and planning how to possibly use the iPad in the classroom only to realize that it wasn't the right place for this tool when actually working with first graders. All that said, I feel that was the right way for me to try to integrate this new tool into the curriculum.  It gave me a good idea of where it could fit and where it could be left on the shelf.

This year, we have learned to roll this tool out with purpose and not just jump in.  We started with a review of the device itself.  What do the various buttons do? Where is the volume? How do you turn the device on and off? How do you know how much battery power is left? When do you need to tell a teacher your device needs to be charged? How do you take a picture? Where is the front camera? Where is the back camera?  It was a great review for the students and teachers alike.  And the big idea that this device was to be used differently in school - it's not your mother's iPad!  

Since it is still the beginning of school, another routine practiced over and over again was "belly buttons down" - a favorite of mine.  This is the signal that all students must stop working, turn their iPad over, and listen to whatever message needs to be delivered.  We practiced this signal many times, the message always being that you can always return to your work, but you need to listen now.

Our grade level team has started discussing where we can go with this tool.  How do we want students to use it in the classroom? Are there certain skills or experiences we want all kids to have before the end of first grade?  We haven't come to any conclusions yet, but are thinking and talking about it.  I am excited for another new year of growth! 

iPrep for iPads: The Game Plan (and Blogging!)

With a great deal of deliberation, 4x has not launched the iPads yet. We will this week – the fourth week of school.  It is the halfway point in the first six weeks – a critical time for routine setting and generally getting to know one’s students.  We waited for a few reasons.  One, a guiding philosophy is that the iPad is a tool and one tool of many that students are equipped with.  It can be perfect or wrong depending on the task, and our students need to now when to use it and when to put it down. Two, we don’t want the iPads (or any particular technology) to be the center of our classroom or our curriculum so we have been doing other stuff with books and color pencils and paper and glue and scissors and poster board.  The pedagogy is leading, and the iPads will literally follow.

When we do launch the iPads on Monday, we are going in with a game plan.  Our tech integration and rollout plan will include “just in time” digital citizenship lessons taught by our Technology and Idea Coordinator, guided discoveries of apps, introductions to supplementary accounts with GoogleDrive and Haiku, email etiquette and protocols, and the piloting of student blogs via KidBlog.

I've selected a few guiding principles or "professional development mantras" to help me stay focused throughout the year, and I look forward to conversing with colleagues about what motivates and guides them.

           We will focus on introducing open ended, creativity apps through meaningful curricular tasks and assignments. When exploring apps, we give minimal instruction.  There is usually a list of things to find or include; part of the learning process is figuring out exactly how to do so.  They teach themselves, each other, and often their teachers! Once the children know enough about these apps, the goal becomes enabling them to choose how to demonstrate what they are learning.  We want them to select the digital or non-digital method/format that is right for them.  We want students to think: 

• How can I best communicate what is in my head? 
• What project can I manage effectively and efficiently?  
• "What can I do well?"  
• "What risk could I take?"

I am most excited about our KidBlog pilot where students will curate their best work and reflect on their learning. Creating digital portfolios is an important next step - the absence of which left last year's program feeling incomplete. We have heard many good things about this platform, and I am hopeful it will help us achieve our goals. We are currently in the process of developing curriculum on publishing and commenting. Some inspiring work comes from:

http://www.notesfrommcteach.com/2010/09/learning-to-blog-using-paper.html

http://educational-blogging.wikispaces.com/

http://studentchallenge.edublogs.org

If you have blogged with students (especially elementary school students) and have some advice, we would love to hear from you!

iPrep for iPads: Mobile Learning Experience 2013

I just got back from Tucson, Arizona where Jenni Voorhees and I attended the 2013 Mobile Learning Experience hosted by Tony Vincent and the Arizona K-12 center.  I thought I was crazy to sign up for a conference taking place the third week of school, but the reality is I have a great co-teacher and an experienced sub to rely on.  It was a terrifically run conference at a fabulous location and well worth the trouble. Moreover, as we prepare to launch the second year of our 1:1 iPad program, the chance to connect with other educators offered inspiration and new ideas, which will ultimately benefit our students.  

In addition to attending the conference, I was selected to present on last year’s 1:1 program, as well as a cornerstone of our professional development program, the PD mantra. Here is a copy of the Prezi for "How iPads Revolutionized our 1:1: Program":

Presenting is such a reflective experience.  Sharing our successes and failures, surprises and challenges, as well as the work of our students, is an honor and a pleasure. It gives me time to pause and question and hope and plan for this year. 

Mobile 2013 reminded me of a few things I do not want to forget:  We are a student centered, student powered classroom.  It is not what they know, but what they can do, make, and create.  Teachers are not to be the “sage on the stage” or the “guide on the side”.  Be the “mentor in the center” who is active, alert, and ready to respond to the many teachable moments that will arise.  Asking good questions is a teacher trait that will never go out of style.  Creativity is a muscle that needs to be exercised.  True humor is deep, thoughtful, and requires critical thinking. Children (and adults!) need to play.  Everyone in the room should experience the joy that is learning.  

These are wise lessons offered by wise educators who believe that technology is a fundamental part of learning experiences today.  Teachers must be creative, nimble, responsive, and flexible.  We don’t need to chase fads, but the world is a-changing, and we are currently in possession of the ones who will create tomorrow.  We have to be on top of our game, or they will resent us for holding them back.

A great experience in Tucson was meeting Ben Loker, owner of Arizona Star Tours.  He told us that when he was about 10 years old he discovered he loved the moon and the stars and began a lifelong journey to study astronomy and keep an eye on the sky.   He started out by getting broken telescopes and fixing them.  The shop owners who supplied him with what he needed eventually gave him a job.  He worked for a star tour company and ultimately bought them out.  Now he owns his own business bringing the highest quality portable telescopes to your conference or wedding and teaching you to see what he sees.  He spends hundreds of hours doing exactly what he loves and shares that love with others.  I left that conversation wondering, how can I better support in my students in finding and  pursuing the things they love?  How can we employ the iPads and technology to foster passion? How will I take what I've learned here and turn it into actual enacted curriculum?

I owe it to my students to keep trying new things and figure it out.

Learning from Setbacks

I just got back from an inspiring  presentation by Carol Dweck, author of Mindset.  In her presentation (and book, which I am thoroughly enjoying reading) Carol talks about two approaches to learning - the fixed mindset and the growth mindset. In a fixed mindset, a person believes that they have a certain amount of intelligence and that's it. In a growth mindset, a person believes that they can always learn, and if they put effort into something they will get results.  Failures do not stop people with a growth mindset.  These setbacks often spur these people on to work harder and make new discoveries.

This got me to thinking about my teaching and learning this year. This has been a huge year of growth for me personally and I have noticed that I am more reflective about my teaching.    One might say I am in a growth mindset now! 

I have been thinking about how we teach and assess children.   If we want our students to learn and grow, then we have to give them ample opportunities to try new things multiple times.  Recently, the Spanish teacher at our school started a project with the students in our class using Book Creator. After the first session with them, she came to tell us the conversations that were happening in her class as the students were creating their books in Spanish.  They weren't afraid to experiment with various things in their books and helped each other throughout the process. As she was talking about the way the children were forging ahead with the project, I couldn't help but think back to the beginning of the year and the first Book Creator books.  The students were afraid to try new things, and wanted  us to talk them through every step.  I remember thinking at this point if it was worth the effort of giving the students this experience.  It took a lot of resolve on my part to find another time for students to experience Book Creator again.  They did, several times, and each time more students felt more comfortable with their results. The ones who were willing to experiment and make discoveries seemed to generate a "can-do" attitude in the classroom.   

Listening to Carol Dweck tonight, I realize again how much impact teachers (and, of course, parents) have on the children in their lives.  If I had let my frustration and discomfort with the project affect the students' access to discoveries, they wouldn't have had the same learning experience in Spanish class.  It reinforced my belief that students need multiple opportunities and ways to show us what they know. Just because they have one setback doesn't mean that they can't learn! Thank you to Carol Dweck for your inspiring words!

A Few Problems, Many Solutions

At this point in the year, the iPads are pretty integrated into our class's curriculum and daily routines.  We have prioritized exploring what we call "creativity apps" as opposed to games and apps with a singular focus.  Meanwhile in math, our class has begun utilizing Exemplars problems and rubrics to further student problem solving, math thinking, and math communication (see Merry Melvin's previous post for more on assessment).  Each problem is rich with multiple questions, levels, and solutions, and our students are finding them appropriately challenging.  We gave them free range to decide how to present their work.

Here are some solutions from the one about predicting the number of Sweethearts in a box:

And the one about planning the sleeping arrangements for class camping trip:

And our most recent problem about carpeting a basement:

Each solution requires a written explanation and a visual representation.  Some students decide to use the iPad to prepare both.  Some students use different apps depending on what they are being asked and some have a favorite they choose consistently.  Some students create their graphs and diagrams using physical materials such as Base Ten blocks or  tiles or puff balls and then document or enhance them by importing a photo.  Some students are comfortable emailing us their work and some students prefer working offline and turning in physical products.  We remain open to all of their preferences and meet them in their comfort zone.

While it was no surprise that many students elected to use their iPads to prepare their final solutions we were fascinated by the range of apps children chose.  Through regular explorations and many months of projects, Drawing Box, AiWriter, Educreations, Explain Everything, Keynote, and Inspiration Maps have become familiar friends. Left to their own devices, students have to decide whether the iPad and our creativity apps are the "right tool for the job" and which tool will serve them best.

Of course we do have some students who insist that the iPad is the best tool for them and it's really not .  But after a few experiences of being distracted and not completing their work on time, they learn that lesson too and change tactics.  At the beginning of the year, we set a few goals for our 4th grade 1-1 iPad program and progress is visible on many fronts.  To me, these are examples of students taking charge of their learning and our classroom becoming a place that fosters and supports creativity, independence, differentiation, and meaningful assessment.

Resolve to be more Interested, less Interesting

The NAIS Annual Conference just took place in Philadelphia and we were once again amazed and overwhelmed by the brilliant speakers and rich, inspired dialogues with our colleagues. As I left by car for a weekend in Ottawa (another story), the many messages began to sift through my mind and resolved in one thought that has been raised to the level of "mantra" over the last few days. This came from Pat Bassett, outgoing NAIS President:

Resolve to be more interested, instead of trying so hard to be interesting.

His thought came in reference to what he's come to realize over the years, and I recognized it immediately as the natural evolution of my previous "mantra" from the Singapore schools: Teach less, learn more. 

Teach Less, Learn More - Exploration vs Explanation

I was inspired by Tom Daccord's reference at the EdTechTeacher iPad Summit to this goal for teachers in the Singapore school system. I realize that when I teach students or teachers to integrate technology into their schoolwork I have often started from a "I'm going to show you how to use this" stance. That approach puts me in front of the group, showing, demonstrating, and then turning it over to the class to try all those steps out. Inevitably I find students and teachers alike assume that they can only proceed to the next step with my permission, or they are defeated by the overwhelming prospect of tackling the project solo and never feel the confidence to work on it outside of my class.

This year, with iPads being used daily in classrooms, we changed our approach from showing and explaining apps and assigning specific apps to projects, to giving students (and teachers!) a dedicated time to explore and discover apps, share what they have learned with each other, and thus build a community of resources in every classroom. As students have explored the apps, we have all learned surprising things about them, which in turn, has helped teachers feel more confident about implementing them. When teachers build in the exploration time before a project is launched, it helps with iPad management, because students can openly share their enthusiasm, knowledge, and creative ideas in a free-wheeling format where sudden discoveries are encouraged. Once the apps are explored, many of our teachers have been willing to present the plan and purpose of the project, and let the students choose the app(s) to use to fit their own vision. Best of all, it is way more fun to explore and learn from each other than to be the fount of all knowledge!

Resolve to be more interested, less interesting

I love this transmutation of the previous idea. What if we, as teachers, spent less time sharing what we know and assuming that what we know is the most interesting thing our students (or colleagues, friends, family, etc!) will ever hear. What if class time was organized around learning from our students about their interests, letting them share what they are learning, with a focus on collaboratively discovering new information. What if we let students take charge of their learning in more ways than just which desk or table they work at? What if we spent more time learning from our colleagues, taking turns, and respecting each other's knowledge and experiences, across all the disciplines? What would it feel like to invest part of every day to actively listening, responding authentically, and using what we learned to create a richer teaching and learning experience for the whole school?

These thoughts are going to be rolling around in my head for a long time to come. I'm interested to hear what all of you are thinking!

“You can put down the iPad…”

OR.... “The Right Tool for the Job.”

 Here are two great tools.  You can accomplish a variety of tasks with either tool.  However, for some jobs, neither the hammer nor the pliers is the right tool.  You can’t paint a wall with either one – that requires a different tool.

 The same idea holds true for any classroom tool, they may or may not be the right tool for every single learning goal we set forth in our classrooms.  You probably wouldn’t use blocks to teach spelling just as you likely wouldn’t use magnetic letters to teach geometry.  So why then would we pull out iPads and try to apply them to every activity in our classrooms?  The answer is:  we wouldn’t.  These are the scenarios to consider when using iPads:

• Sometimes iPads will be the right tool for everyone

Think about the Substitution level of the SAMR model created by Ruben Putendura. 

Everyone in your class might be on iPads to do research, to write papers, etc.  This shouldn’t be the most common scenario however.  It brings to mind images of students lined up in desks, plugged into computers, consuming rather than creating or collaborating.

• Sometimes iPads will be the right tool for some

 This is where differentiation stands out and really helps your students with varied learning styles.  Consider your students when designing projects and offer options for the finished product.  It’s really the learning that happens during the process that counts after all.  Allow students to make a movie, create a cartoon strip, record an original song, make a book, etc., to demonstrate understanding.  

• Sometimes iPads will be the right tool for part of a project            

We love to combine paper/pencil, iPad, manipulatives to investigate an idea or deepen our thinking.  This might be a project that involves creating a book about a math concept.  Students might use a math app or watch a math video (think Flipped Classroom) to get some background content.  They might then use math manipulatives to practice/demonstrate understanding and to find complexity.  The next step could be to choose how they articulate their thinking centered around this project – some might choose an iPad path, others might choose paper/pencil.

• Sometimes iPads might not be the right tool for anyone or any part of a project

In the end, as with any learning goal you have, it is really all about your classroom culture.  What makes sense for your teaching style?  For a given group of students? For the subject matter? For any particular project?  Consider the types of thinking/learning you wish to have your students do: consider different viewpoints, find complexity, deepen understanding, make connections, create, imagine, question, observe, or investigate.  Consider how the iPad can add a dimension to your students experiences that they would not get any other way. (redefinition, SAMR)  And then, give yourself permission to let your students find their own individuality and their own unique way of articulating their thinking/learning.

Learning is Creation

Our team has been focusing on using mantras to focus our thinking about iPads and how we are using them in the classroom as we talk about, write about, and share our experience with others.  What's mine right now?

"Learning is Creation" 

In a previous post I wrote about "creativity" being a goal of the fourth grade one-to-one program.  When I heard or saw some iteration of the above statement at the EdTech iPad Summit in Boston, I was taken aback because though I have always firmly believed in "creativity as an essential component of learning", this sounded different.   I enjoy semantic banter from time to time so I turned the phrase over a bit in my head.    It wasn't learning is creative or learning involves creativity.  It was "learning is creation". A big theme of the conference was how the expectations for students and workers and citizens are changing. With knowledge being something of a cheap commodity these days it's much less about what you know and more about what you can do with what you know.  The models of education that are about consumption of information are becoming less useful than situations where students are given opportunities to use what they know to do something innovative.

It reminds me of the contrasts made between passive and active learning. However, it is different because I can imagine situations where students look active and are being creative, but are not necessarily producing or experiencing anything novel, new, or innovative.  An engaging lesson can still place the student in the position of the consumer if they are "doing" the ideas and processes and products of someone else.  Until they are owning one of the three, they might not be creating anything, no matter how creative the result appears.   Throughout the conference and after, I really became fixated on what types of things I had been asking my students to do, why I wanted them to do them, and what they were gaining by doing them. 

Of course a parallel thought was how could the iPad positively impact what was being done in our classroom. I ruminated on what kinds of things were bring created in our classroom and my first thoughts were pretty literal. Art, of course. Writing. And then I talked to people about it and the list grew:  understanding, ideas, opinions, perspectives, processes, problems, solutions...the list goes on. 

I definitely feel that iPads are revolutionizing our class's one to one program.  Moving from netbooks to iPads means that children are engaging with the available technology in much more meaningful ways and those ways really have to do with what the devices allow our children to create. Now I see creation happening when they are use Drawing Box to design maps that show their understanding of landforms and orientation:

Or Inspiration maps to create an organized flow for their research paper:

Or when designing a process to finish a project.  Using Educreations and Explain Everything we've been making screen casting videos in math to demonstrate and record procedures and solutions.  We decided not to show them how to use either program; one of our goals was for them to design a process that allowed them to meet the objectives: make a video that shows how to solve an area and perimeter problem for a chosen rectangular object.  Include a photo, text, and your voice. Good luck!

Here the process of making the video was just as important as the math concepts.   Along the way they demonstrated an ability to measure and multiply, but they also learned to work through frustrations and create solutions to apparent and surprising problems. Following our last screen casting project using Educreations a pair of students wanted to make another screencast. They heard we had a similar program called Screen Chomp.  They asked to make a screencast showing how to use it.   These two children came in at recess to work on their project for over a week.  All of a sudden they were in iMovie filming themselves using the program.  They added credits and music and then created a trailer. We started having "production and promotion" meetings to determine an audience and possible distribution channels.  They showed it to some classmates, who pointed out a few flaws, and decided to organize their feedback using a survey created in Google Forms.  Through their own initiative, they sure have learned and taught themselves a lot.  All that they needed was the space, time, and tools to bring their ideas to life.   They are now teaching themselves Keynote so that they can teach the class how to use it, and several other students have developed projects for iStopMotion videos, book trailers, and movies to promote our upcoming class play.

Learning is creation.

Great teaching is about the process, not the product

iPads fit perfectly into teaching thinking, creativity, and problem solving because they allow for a unique and thought-filled process.  Teachers who give assignments and expect products will create one type of student - the type who knows he/she just needs to figure out what the teacher wants.

Teachers who send students on journeys where they get to demonstrate understanding, think flexibly / creatively, see things from differing viewpoints, make connections, teach others, practice persistence, experience struggle, and articulate their thinking create one type of student - the type who knows that it is the thinking itself that is valued.

 
What happens when something goes wrong?  An iPad is a piece of technology after all, so something will go wrong sooner or later.  When a student loses a project or an app crashes it's important to remember that just the project was lost.  The student still has his knowledge, his creativity, his thinking. He has still been on a journey of learning.  It's just the product that was lost - not the process.

iPads are not the answer to every educational challenge or opportunity.  Just because a device is great doesn't mean it's worth giving to a child for educational purposes (Mike Muir, 2011).  This is true of any tool we use in our classrooms.  However, iPads do allow for varied, individual, and creative thinking opportunities for a wide range of students. It's not about whether this is the right tool, it's about when is this the right tool, and how can teachers use it effectively.  In other words, educators need to remember that the iPad can be a tool to teach thinking.  It should be used to help students think and learn and not to provide just another way to deliver a product.

Book Creator

These past few weeks have been all about Book Creator in the classroom...

Book Creator is a wonderful and student friendly app for creating books with audio.

Last week my students shared their thoughts about Romare Bearden's artwork Home to Ithaca using the See Think Wonder Thinking Routine (we love Project Zero Making Thinking Visible - Thinking Routines). After studying the artwork, we first discussed what we See (a boat, water, trees, a person). Then we tackled what we Think (this might be Odysseus, the shield shapes might be very old, the person might be a man). Finally we shared what this art made us wonder (are any of the buildings a fortress, is the boat coming or going, did this village really exist).

Normally, our students illustrate their own version of the art and through shared writing, we note what everyone has shared.

Last week, we added an extra step.... The students photographed their illustration and we created a See Think Wonder book where everyone had a page with an illustration, their photo, and then an audio recording of their contributions. (a few pages from the book are below)





This week we went further. For the writing task the students each picked a class "job." Yesterday they wrote simple, step by step instructions for the job. Then they picked up an iPad and took two pictures around the room that best demonstrated the job. Today the students each started their iBook instruction manual. With very little demonstration the kindergarteners quickly picked up the basics. The only typing they most did was on the cover page where they added the book title and their name as author. Then they selected photos for the two pages which would help explain their job from start to finish. Some students found they wanted to use a picture that we hadn't taken so they slipped into Draw Free and created what they wanted - then slipped back to their book and inserted the drawing. A couple of kids staged new photos to insert into their book as they found some step needed alternate explanation. (a student example for the Door Holder job is below - including a drawing that illustrates where in the line the Door Holder should stand)


This second student book was created for the Snack Helper job - using photos and three audio recordings that break the job down into three steps.



The highlight was recording the audio. The students quickly realized that the best audio was captured when they spoke loud and clear. (Great practice for articulating thinking, creating complete sentences, and speaking with emotion) Some students recorded their audio all at one time - under one "audio button" and some made many buttons so that they could record their job step by step.

What I'd like to change.... I would like the add a page feature to either ask for confirmation before adding the page or that it be located away from the edge of the page. The kids added many extra blank pages as their finger hit the button while they were trying to resize or move a photo. I also would like the option of selecting an alpha order keyboard in addition to the qwerty.

Criteria for app Selection

In a nutshell:

We look for three basic qualities in an app (listen up app developers):

*must do more than one thing
*needs to have a settings option so that we can change/personalize it
*should not be over congratulatory (no wild applause/cheers)


Beyond that - we are looking for apps with a dynamic quality so that creativity, thinking, and problem solving come into play. We don't want to apply technology simply for the sake of applying technology.

Evernote!

Evernote is a great tool for classroom documentation.

It used to be that the other kindergarten teachers and I would walk around the classroom with a clipboard and scribble notes about student learning, thinking, challenges, and any other skill or ability that our children were demonstrating. By the time report writing came around, I had amassed quite a stack of scribbles and post-it's. It was really nothing that I could share with anyone until after I spent some time sifting through the scribbles and writing drafts of my reports. Using Evernote on our iPads, we can do more and we can share it all. Having created one Evernote folder for each student, I can now walk around the classroom as learning is happening and capture the students articulating their thinking. Evernote allows teachers to type notes, take photos, upload photos, and record audio.

Now, using Evernote, I am able to take a photo of a student's work, and then have a conversation with her as I record her thinking. I can make her thinking visible. (to me, to her, to another teacher who was not present, even to her parents if needed)

Using tags, I can come back later and search for a particular student's work. I can search for all math pattern work or all reading levels or any other category of learning that I tag to find out how we are doing as a whole class. I can save emails and documents that pertain to a student's learning or challenges in their individual Evernote folder.

I can take notes during parent conferences - using my tablet pc and Evernote I can even ink notes in Evernote during meetings and conferences. (dear Evernote, please make inking possible on the iPad version...)



Why this is a good idea:
-use evernote to snap photos of students at work and then write your notes directly onto the note for that photo
-use a new note to compose thoughts for reports from anywhere in your classroom, another classroom, on a field trip, anywhere
-use audio recording in evernote for classroom documentation, both student-led and teacher
-create a folder in your evenote binder for each student at the start of the year
-use evernote to add other documentation on each student as needed - emails, documents, photos, etc.
-open your evernote folders from any computer to write reports or updates or to check for assessments
-share your folders with other teachers, support people as needed
-keep every artifact about your students together, paperless, and accessible from anywhere