*Description*: A learning application that can be utilized through computers, tablets or smartphones. Teachers can create multimedia lessons and it allows students to discuss and collaborate in relation to the content. It allows for peers to anonymously discuss and critique one another, providing feedback to peers and the teacher. *Examples of Uses: *Students can respond before examining one another's thoughts, then examine and respond to peer contributions. They can then reflect on peer critiques and responses in regard to their own thoughts. Then perhaps harness their reflection to come up with project action steps in order to build off the new information/feedback.
*Short Description:* Perdue Online Writing Lab is a website database that allows for easy access on Research and Citation style formatting (both MLA and APA). Considering all the source types, it is hard to keep track of how to properly cite them (both in text and works cited page requirements). Citation Machine is an online citation generating application that allows students to enter a web address or a book title and the program will compose a bibliographical citation in MLA, APA or Chicago style. I recommend having students learn to access both.
*Examples of Uses*: While many of my students try to use Easybib.com, it isn't always accurate and only offers MLA citations for free, while they require users to pay for Easybib Pro. The Perdue Online Writing Lab site is easily navigated and both lays out how each citation type is formatted, but also models the format with sample citations. For something similar to Easybib, the Citation Machine is where you can enter the web address and receive the citation, however it will have points where it won't be able to come up with a citation for certain types of websites (online pdf document, for example, may cause problems with the system). For this reason I teach students about both so they can do accurate citations for bibliographies and can check them against the Perdue site as a reference resource that is easily accessible online.
As a class activity, I give students a citation from an online source but it has errors. The students have to figure out how to fix the citations and re-format them into a new citations page using the two resources to help them.
Short Description: Classcraft is an online interactive teaching program and service that allows teachers to "gainful" their classrooms. It creates a format and layout where students can approach class work with a video game mentality where students can create an avatar and do coursework through the program (and submit work through Google Classroom) and communicate with the teacher, group work with each other and keep track of learning goals. There is a Free version and a Premium version that offer a wide array of options.
Examples of Uses: - Students can do "quests" with their avatar that can differentiate instruction. - Students can engage in "Boss Battles" that challenge students. - Teachers create assignments that allow students to role play through their avatar and think critically about the content.
*Short Description*: Waveside is an online homework posting site. Students access a teacher's homework posts by inserting the teacher's id. They are then able to see what the teacher has posted for class work/homework for the day they open access. To see what a teacher assigned on a previous date, they can navigate using the calendar tool on the right side of the page. There is also a posting of upcoming due dates with the name of the assignment and students can tap on the name of an assignment and it will link them back to the original assignment posting with the assignment details.
*Examples of Use: *I post both the learning targets, class work and homework for my classes so that students who are absent will know what they have missed aside from their homework. I also put links to the worksheets that they might need, study sheets or presentation notes so they can review what is necessary. Parents are also able to access the site and see what we are working on during any specific day.
*Tool Name*: Emaze (https://www.emaze.com/) *Short description*: Emaze is an online presentation tool. It can be used to create presentations, blogs and websites. It is similar to Power Point in its presentation capabilities and a person can upload an existing power point presentation to update and tweak it. One benefit that it has over Power Point is the ease with which one can embed media (videos, mp3s & images) plus there are some nice animation and 3D effects that can be added that can improve the flow and appearance of your presentations. (model 1 (http:// https://www.emaze.com/@AOLRCQLIZ), model 2 (https://www.emaze.com/@AOLRRTZLC)) *Examples for uses*: Students can work together and synthesize multiple media sources to support their presentation examining a key speech from American history (such as the I Have a Dream speech) where they can embed the news footage of the speech, walk-through it, share important highlights of it from their slide or create a performance piece and embed it within the presentation.
*Short Description:* The New York Times has a specific website that offers teaching ideas and directly relates to current content and articles that they publish in the paper and how to utilize it in classes, encouraging students to explore, question and evaluate real news content and also compose editorials of their own, applying those skills. It offers reliable sources on topics related to social media and digital citizenship, but also offers teaching ideas to help integrate the sources into class and give teachers a jumping off point for a variety of news issues.
*Examples of Uses:* The topic of digital citizenship, questioning media sources and examining bias comes up often, the most recent this month connected to an article on False News being easily spread by social media (https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/12/learning/teaching-activities-for-its-true-false-news-spreads-faster-and-wider-and-humans-are-to-blame.html?rref=collection%2Fsectioncollection%2Flearning&action=click&contentCollection=learning®ion=stream&module=stream_unit&version=search&contentPlacement=1&pgtype=sectionfront) and concern about lax social media enforcement (https://www.nytimes.com/2018/02/22/learning/teaching-activities-for-on-social-media-lax-enforcement-lets-impostor-accounts-thrive.html?rref=collection%2Fsectioncollection%2Flearning&action=click&contentCollection=learning®ion=stream&module=stream_unit&version=search&contentPlacement=16&pgtype=sectionfront) allowing for false accounts that can be used for misleading people. The offered lesson plans that teachers can use includes before reading activities and comprehension questions, as well as opportunities to respond through a comment board to the paper and interact with other readers. The network also offers yearly student editorial contests (https://www.nytimes.com/2018/02/28/learning/student-editorial-contest.html?rref=collection%2Fsectioncollection%2Flearning&action=click&contentCollection=learning®ion=stream&module=stream_unit&version=search&contentPlacement=1&pgtype=sectionfront) and regular media interactive activities as well. It offers students a chance to communicate with a wider media audience, but has careful guidelines and necessitates citation of sources when students submit their work to the network, offering a framework for the interaction (rubric for scoring (https://static01.nyt.com/files/2018/learning/NYTLN-StudentEditorialContestRubric.pdf)) and apply them in developing better digital citizenship skills.