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What it is: Inklewriter is a great digital tool that lets students (and teachers if you are so inclined) write and publish interactive stories.  Inklewriter lets students create choose-your-own-adventure type stories, story lines can come with choices and then be linked back together.  Inklewriter makes this process easier by keeping track of which story paths have been finished and which still need work.  There is no set-up required, no programming language to learn and no diagrams.  Inklewriter is free to use and easy to share with the world when it is published.  When a story is finished, it can even be converted to Kindle format! iLearnTechnology

There are plenty of places to find reviews of iPad apps, but how do you decide which ones are right for you and your students? Silvia Tolisano has some suggestions for you. Silvia recently published a nice guide for evaluating iPad apps. The guide walks you through six themes of the selection process before concluding with a checklist that you can use when it is time to choose apps for your classroom. 

"PowToon would be a great addition to the design thinking routine. Students can use PowToon to share their ideas or to "prototype" an idea. Students can create videos to show math processes, explanations of complex concepts, review new learning, teach others, explain processes, tell stories, or present research. The possibilities are really endless and students will come up with hundreds of other creative uses. Teachers can use PowToon to create animations for students. This is a great way to present new information or ideas for discussion. Tips: The PowToon Interactive Tour and How to Create series are very helpful to watch prior to creating your first animations."

The idea behind the site is to introduce students to a variety of books and form classroom book groups.  How does Extreme Speed Booking work?  A whole lot like speed dating.      Students spend a little time with each book and then rate them accordingly with "I want to read more",  "Interesting", "Not for me", or "I've already read".  Students can also make a note of how interested they are in reading the book (maybe a 1-10 scale)?  This process introduces students to a variety of books, genres and authors.  Students may come across titles and authors they wouldn't otherwise find.  It also helps teachers form classroom book groups that are of high-interest and investment to students because they had input. iLearn Technology

If you have parents who are looking for information on private speech language pathologists, this site provides information on finding a SLP who lives in their area and offers services in a particular area, such as articulation, expressive language, receptive language, auditory processing, etc.

When you're trying to figure out how to use a new piece of software or a new web application, searching YouTube for how-to videos often returns some useful stuff. But for teachers there is a better place to turn to and that place is Russell Stannard's Teacher Training Videos. Russell Stannard's videos are screencasts in which he walks viewers through the process of using software and web applications from beginning to end. The videos are categorized by the purpose of the application  such as blogging, podcasting resources, online quizzes, file sharing, IWB, etc. There are also categories for EFL and MFL.

How to integrate the NOVA Design a Parachute interactive into the classroom: In this activity, students assume the role of engineer as they design a parachute that will slow the Mars Explorer Rover as it lands on the surface of Mars.  I like the authentic feel of this activity, students are led through the thinking process of an engineer as they consider all of the requirements the chute must meet before they begin designing.Approach this interactive as a class using an interactive whiteboard or projector-connected computer.  As a class, get "briefed" on the requirements for the parachute design.  Discuss how these requirements may impact the parachute design.  Treat this like an actual briefing and encourage discussion (all ages like to pretend!).  Before students access the interactive, ask them to sketch their thoughts about parachute design.  This lets them think through the design apart from the pre-determined categories presented in the interactive.Students can design and test their parachutes individually in a one to one computer lab setting or take turns designing and testing in a computer center lab on classroom computers.Debrief after the interactive to discuss the parameters that were the most successful and what students learned about volume, drag, strength and stability.Extend this activity by creating a mock-up of the parachute they designed online.  Find a high place on the playground or in the building where students can test these parachutes.  What did they have to adjust for an Earth bound parachute? iLearn Technology

A site showing how Web 2.0 tools fit in with 6+1 writing

How to integrate the NOVA Design a Parachute interactive into the classroom: In this activity, students assume the role of engineer as they design a parachute that will slow the Mars Explorer Rover as it lands on the surface of Mars.  I like the authentic feel of this activity, students are led through the thinking process of an engineer as they consider all of the requirements the chute must meet before they begin designing. Approach this interactive as a class using an interactive whiteboard or projector-connected computer.  As a class, get "briefed" on the requirements for the parachute design.  Discuss how these requirements may impact the parachute design.  Treat this like an actual briefing and encourage discussion (all ages like to pretend!).  Before students access the interactive, ask them to sketch their thoughts about parachute design.  This lets them think through the design apart from the pre-determined categories presented in the interactive. Students can design and test their parachutes individually in a one to one computer lab setting or take turns designing and testing in a computer center lab on classroom computers. Debrief after the interactive to discuss the parameters that were the most successful and what students learned about volume, drag, strength and stability. Extend this activity by creating a mock-up of the parachute they designed online.  Find a high place on the playground or in the building where students can test these parachutes.  What did they have to adjust for an Earth bound parachute? Tips: The NOVA page has a great introduction paragraph about how engineers approach a problem.  Be sure to read it with your students!  Encourage students to learn more about the Mars Explorer Rover before designing the chute.  It may adjust their thinking!From I Learn Technology blog

iRead is a group of teachers in Escondido Union School District dedicated to the idea that digital audio can be a powerful learning tool for all students. iRead will give you a chance to create meaningful, curriculum-centered audio projects with your students. Teachers are using digital audio tools (iPods, mics, Garageband, iTunes,  Keynote, etc. and various accessories) to improve reading processes. Teachers meet on a monthly basis to exchange ideas and strategies. We started in 2006-07 by collecting data about fluency rates - this has been very promising. Click on Visitors to get an overview of the iRead program.

A list of story starters for elementary students.