tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-75126544100539533352024-03-14T09:34:12.241-04:00The Technological Conundrum...because there are so many questions and technologies to talk about...Clarena M. Renfrow, M.Ed.http://www.blogger.com/profile/09483064540883357616noreply@blogger.comBlogger39125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7512654410053953335.post-90358714779452526652020-01-19T11:04:00.009-05:002020-06-13T15:12:25.439-04:00Thoughts on Artificial Intelligence in 2020<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<h2 style="text-align: left;"><font size="2"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlRKuC1I0w-GOEqRkHqTqMWH8L6833VA0GN6y-cYny24Op_5XqSybxezGoyjzz7yDSSBcH9nh20VxMKN2OLabEgooCePFR2NRIC-GEcJlu1DDJhavPeDmQEHCf0mo0T36RZ2QKYma-S-w/s1280/artificial-intelligence-3262753_1280.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="696" data-original-width="1280" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlRKuC1I0w-GOEqRkHqTqMWH8L6833VA0GN6y-cYny24Op_5XqSybxezGoyjzz7yDSSBcH9nh20VxMKN2OLabEgooCePFR2NRIC-GEcJlu1DDJhavPeDmQEHCf0mo0T36RZ2QKYma-S-w/s320/artificial-intelligence-3262753_1280.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>by Clarena M. Renfrow</font></h2>
<div><br /> For the last several years I have been thinking a lot about artificial intelligence. How will it impact our world? How will impact it me and my family? My students? The future? So many questions that are as of yet unanswered. Nobody really knows. Not really.</div>
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I started investigating where we are with it. How is it being used and what the hopes are for its' development? I learned a great deal, but more questions were raised. What laws are guiding AI development? With all the different companies developing AI around the world, how will AI be regulated? How far should AI go in controlling our lives? What are the ethics of its' development? Are we dancing with the devil and don't even know it? </div>
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Let me say that I am not someone who is against AI. I believe that it can do a great deal to help humanity from security in our homes, to helping us find cures for disease. It can assist in educating our children, exploring space, and perhaps help us figure out how to solve global warming. We have many questions and issues that need solving and AI could be a great tool for this. What lingers in my mind though is that while good people develop and use it for good, people with nefarious intentions will use it for evil and the in between can be a slippery slope. Without sufficient laws, criminal behavior goes unpunished. Data collection, for example, can be used for good or with malicious intention. </div>
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Data collection and analyzation regarding medicine, diseases, hunger, poverty, sustainable energy, and pollution, etc. can be done faster by AI than any human. AI can be instrumental is assisting us to solve big problems using big data. That is really exciting! There are currently small AI robots that we can purchase for our homes that are used for security monitoring, helping the elderly and disabled, cleaning our homes, monitoring air quality, communications and so much more. We also have Amazon Echo, Google Home, and Apple HomePod (to name a few) in our homes as AI assistants. Personally, I have a roomba, scooba, and an echo in my home and really like them. They are useful tools.</div>
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AI is also used to collect data about you. It tracks your online behaviors, purchases, location, where you live, work, and anything else it can find. You don't even know that it's happening and/or didn't read the fine print when you played a game online that says you are giving them access to your social media. Then AI is used to learn about your friends. Big companies do this mostly to sell you what they determine you want to buy. That's why when you buy a pair of shoes, the next thing you know all those same style of shoes are in advertisements you see online. However, it is also used to change the reality that you see online to manipulate you for some purpose. Of course, we know that techniques like this were used in our last election to get us to vote in a certain way with information that wasn't all factual. This disturbs me greatly. Where are the laws to protect us from this kind of manipulation? How do we know what to believe? This is the United States of America right? How many of you have read the book, <u><a href="https://www.amazon.com/1984-George-Orwell/dp/0452262933/ref=sr_1_2?crid=5LELLXC390LD&keywords=book+1984+by+george+orwell+paperback&qid=1579446656&sprefix=book+1984%2Caps%2C612&sr=8-2" target="_blank">1984 by George Orwell</a></u>? If not, you should. There are a lot of comparisons to our modern day situation in the world. I urge you to investigate for yourself not only about what's happening in our country, but around the world, especially in China. Shouldn't our personal privacy be respected?</div>
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My purpose for this blog is to provoke you to investigate AI, machine learning and robotics for yourself and then think deeply about it. Ask yourself the tough questions. We all need to be aware of what we are doing and giving away online and not succumb to the convenience and entertainment we perceive. We must make sure that AI is used for good and not manipulation, tracking, crime, and other evils. How is it currently being used in the military and what are the plans for the future? Don't we have enough killing machines now? We must insist on laws that govern how AI is used because the decisions we make now will not only effect us, but our children and grandchildren. We need to decide what kind of world in which we want them to live. </div>
<div><br /></div><div>picture attribution: <a href="https://pixabay.com/photos/artificial-intelligence-technology-3262753/">https://pixabay.com/photos/artificial-intelligence-technology-3262753/</a></div>
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Clarena M. Renfrow, M.Ed.http://www.blogger.com/profile/09483064540883357616noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7512654410053953335.post-2241145810779142912017-04-11T12:17:00.007-04:002020-06-13T15:16:16.796-04:003D Printing and Future Careers<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://technologicalconundrum.blogspot.com/2017/04/3d-printing-and-future-careers.html" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1386" data-original-width="2048" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnk2AfHrNwcfDZyIk2TCJ-CSy4vJ2FDTmOmVmHU5f6dkCkaRzL1hymCop-hFY2fUi2QhdUQP05-st3jWQhSxUu1v5KvVeKpVrULkDzZ6BdBBcCaLhAmnMt0tlFAi5yzS3SdIMiJ37OYao/s320/Felix_3D_Printer_-_Printing_Set-up_With_Examples.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div>My colleague and I have been teaching 3D Printing to educators at Castleton University for a few years now. It has amazed me that even in this short time how much 3D printing has progressed. Some people ask me why students should learn how to 3D print because they don't understand what it is really good for except tinkering. My answer...take a look at the new careers out there using the concepts of this technology!<br />
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This technology, now called, additive manufacturing, is everywhere... construction, medical field, fashion, archeology, and so many other places. Just take a look at a couple of these videos and see what it is being used for.<br />
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: "trebuchet ms", sans-serif; font-size: small;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1u4I0vxdFZU" target="_blank">Architecture </a></span></span><br />
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<span style="color: lime; font-family: "trebuchet ms", sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_EksaKr2_4U" style="font-family: roboto, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" target="_blank">Forensic Archeology</a></span></div>
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I think you get the idea. This technology not only requires students think creatively, but also to use software to make their vision come to life in 3D using specialized software. It is a different way of thinking and creative problem solving. The uses for this technology are expanding rapidly and career opportunities for students who have had exposure and experience creating in this way will really have a leg up in the industry.</div>
<div><br /></div><div>picture attribution: <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Felix_3D_Printer_-_Printing_Set-up_With_Examples.JPG">https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Felix_3D_Printer_-_Printing_Set-up_With_Examples.JPG</a></div><div style="text-align: left;">
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Clarena M. Renfrow, M.Ed.http://www.blogger.com/profile/09483064540883357616noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7512654410053953335.post-36206573389865500322014-04-18T21:58:00.002-04:002020-06-13T15:18:53.394-04:00Real Time Research - What's Going on in the World Right Now?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://technologicalconundrum.blogspot.com/2014/04/real-time-research-whats-going-on-in.html" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJFMCNWvwRmhPjxPF2xGHd47xtr4InQiatPvVdWSc-Xtgt14O9HNcQV100x5C2LZuCnRuTavRX3Mbzv4oWuq69J8EsV6L50sLFu0POrOZzR26NuPnnJndzPZCy6YHmQXlBzVQjDC1PG5A/w200-h200/1024px-Twitter_Logo_Mini.svg.png" width="200" /></a><span></span></div>Like many people, I used to take for granted posting to friends on Facebook and sharing with relatives those cute family pictures. Then an event took place which changed my thinking of how information - real-time information - is shared and how that has impacted our ability to be "in the know" and the ethical responsibilities that have evolved.</div><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><br /></div><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">When Hurricane Irene hit Vermont, I was sitting in my living room looking outside thinking that this storm hadn't turned out to be as bad as they had thought. At my house, it didn't seem to be so dangerous. To pass some time, I went on Facebook only to find out that others were not faring well and just how bad the storm was. My friends and family were posting pictures of what was happening around them as well as pictures from the news on the Internet. I was horrified. Some members of my own family were fleeing their home for higher ground. I checked my tweets and I learned all about what was not only happening in Vermont, but from all over the storm area. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
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This personal real-time reporting is powerful. We now see real-time reporting used commonly in the news and people who are in the middle of an event are tweeting and otherwise reporting out what they see, hear and feel in very personal ways. This type of news is made up of first-hand accounts - a new kind of primary source has emerged.</div>
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Being a teacher, I began to think about how this new kind of powerful real-time information could be of use in student research. My mind traveled through scenarios of students learning about elections using Twitter to see how the elections are going in any given country at any given moment or searching for information on any modern event they may be learning about in class. All they would have to do is use a hashtag or just simply search a topic and find out about anything they want to know that is going on in the world right now! Talk about a way to learn about and live history..... </div>
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I began working with teachers to share these ideas and to demonstrate different apps and web tools that would help them create new learning environments for their students. Teachers were generally amazed at what could be found out in a few seconds of a search on Twitter or Facebook. Even texting can be very useful especially if you can create a network of people willing to pass along and relate back information. Modern technology is really a miracle, but not without a downside. What if people lie about what is going on around them in real time?</div>
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I challenge you educators out there to teach your students to use social networking in ways that will further their education, satisfy their curiosity, communicate with experts, and understand this new powerful and important means of obtaining modern primary sources. They themselves could become a primary resource and understanding the ethical responsibility of that possibility is crucial. We must not only teach them about what they can do with technology, but what they should and should not do with it. Like it or not, we must teach them digital citizenship and ethics. With the miracle of technology, comes great responsibility as well. Just like evaluating resources on the Internet, students need to remember to not just look at one piece of real-time information as if it is gospel, but to look at many sources to sort out what is going on with a given event.</div>
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Below are some tools that may assist you in using social networking as a means of research with your students as well as some resources for teaching digital citizenship and ethics.</div>
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Flipboard - absolutely an amazing app to gather all kinds of information and put it into "magazines" on any given topic from multiple sources. Available for computer, ios and Android</div>
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Twitter apps are widely available in all kinds of platform.</div>
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TweetDeck is an app as well as an online tool.</div>
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Facebook apps are widely available in addition to using it on the computer.</div>
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Paper.li - is an app or an online tool that allows you to create a real-time newspaper based on the information that you want to know.</div>
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Digital Citizenship and Ethics</h3>
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<a href="http://www.commonsensemedia.org/educators">http://www.commonsensemedia.org/educators</a></div>
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<a href="http://www.digitalcitizenship.net/">http://www.digitalcitizenship.net/</a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">picture attribution: <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Twitter_Logo_Mini.svg">https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Twitter_Logo_Mini.svg</a></div>
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Clarena M. Renfrow, M.Ed.http://www.blogger.com/profile/09483064540883357616noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7512654410053953335.post-47013553046260859762013-12-14T09:45:00.003-05:002020-06-11T22:24:53.121-04:00iPads Level the Playing Field for All<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://pixabay.com/photos/school-tablet-ipad-education-3765919/" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1282" data-original-width="1920" height="134" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9vZrmuLpAg5j35qA-aLyCVqStt55-wcQax2dOxj-IbGX40DhqWs5-WrKRytj63dsFpA8dlPaIDS2N-Mu6ZAwWgr9CQE7jIcQtgmkR9OVvCBEnnO2cBp6x8aQOQRnL5aRvGGG-NgbUC84/w200-h134/school-3765919_1920.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>I have been very passionate about the use of iPads in education ever since I got one in my hands <br />several years ago. Since then I have been teaching various courses to assist educators in using them with their students and to understand the pedagogical implications. iPads offer a new way of teaching, learning and assessing that is meaningful, authentic, collaborative, and creative. They allow students to communicate with each other and the world both locally and globally and despite what some educators think, they are useful with all students no matter their age or ability.<div><br />
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The iPad is an amazing tool for special education. Between apps and settings, it is an assistive technology marvel. Just the other day, one of the teachers in my course commented on the unexpected outcomes of using an iPad in her classroom. She has young children with special needs. She created a learning opportunity to address the skill deficits of each child during the week using an iPad. Not only did the children improve their skills dramatically, but their social skills improved as well. The iPad had also become a tool for learning social interaction skills, turn taking, learning conversation and speaking skills. I have personally seen a child who was unable to speak at age level benefit from receiving an iPad. The little girl was two years old and unable to say what she wanted. She could not retrieve words or would say words that made no sense even though she knew what she wanted to say. This often caused frustration, anxiety and temper tantrums. She had speech therapy, occupational therapy, etc., and while she improved, it was slow. Her parents purchased an iPad and we loaded it with everything educational for a two year old and concentrated on apps for teaching speech and anything that talked to her, and read to her. She was engaged with it immediately and within two months she had gained 50 correct, understandable words and the frequency of temper tantrums had decreased!! This iPad has continued to be one of her learning tools over the past three years. Now that she is five, you would never know she ever had a speech deficit. She is highly verbal, understandable, can easily get across what she wants to say! There are so many stories like these that are truly heartwarming and inspiring. The articles that I have read about the successes of autistic children and adults who use iPads were enough to bring happy tears to my eyes.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2GVInoeM-jdhP7tL5JM8JehZCvy_rM9xeJtVrMB6q6u_-8ZHShUXNpch2gJZ1PJ02AD1zbGE99eay8PPeVTo91E5Pw3s4J0XjM3R-2-1AyIIUxhhW4B5H9a03sgpsA1NdNDlOLHVlVcc/s1600/IMG_4150.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2GVInoeM-jdhP7tL5JM8JehZCvy_rM9xeJtVrMB6q6u_-8ZHShUXNpch2gJZ1PJ02AD1zbGE99eay8PPeVTo91E5Pw3s4J0XjM3R-2-1AyIIUxhhW4B5H9a03sgpsA1NdNDlOLHVlVcc/s200/IMG_4150.jpg" width="150" /></a>Have they been a disruptive technology? Absolutely! They are shaking things up, forcing us educators to think in new ways to engage students in their learning. This is a good thing even while I still feel that it is important for children to learn basics without technology too (writing with a pencil, learning to do math first without a calculator, coloring with crayons, creating a hand made graph, etc.), I do feel that this mobile technology is important on many levels. We have to remember that even a pencil was once a new technology and probably feared by some at that time. Let's not be afraid of embracing a technology that can assist us in differentiating learning, providing students with avenues of collaboration, experimentation and creativity and providing assistive technologies for those in need of them. The world is different now. Educators have powerful tools like never before. Embrace it and facilitate learning for your students using technology to find creative and innovative solutions to problems because they are the future and it matters. </div>
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/TlpzKnYBwIY" width="560"></iframe></div>Clarena M. Renfrow, M.Ed.http://www.blogger.com/profile/09483064540883357616noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7512654410053953335.post-80544088212962156232013-02-15T11:01:00.001-05:002020-06-11T22:45:43.926-04:00Create a Think Tank with ThinkBinder!<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://www.needpix.com/photo/download/17772/notebook-diary-open-blank-binder-folder-organizer-memo-pad" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1250" data-original-width="1280" height="195" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiO6Ad-1QTJLb69nk9vKBuZgSENSeO05KyfxNrsFshpyUtoBGQA5u8iyUbHOF2Ddz9G-x5rz_1iBy3AG-1y00tPoT38raXpsrN7KtO69STD-uTIUGI3RsWAR9Lp512B8zkw8_bsGC-jYU/w200-h195/notebook-23642_1280.png" width="200" /></a>ThinkBinder is a way to create virtual study groups. It has an interface which allows students to create groups, have a shared calendar, draw on a whiteboard collaboratively, participate in a discussion feed, and in a video chat! This web 2.0 tool is very versatile and is a great way for students to get together online to work collaboratively on homework, projects and study for tests. <br /><br /> <a href="https://www.blogger.com/u/1/#"><br /></a>The interface is very easy to use. You invite your classmates to your study group via email and once they accept, they are available for video chat, messaging, whiteboards, and more. Imagine being able to help each other with math problems by using the collaborative whiteboard to draw it all out or create storyboards for a video project! Students living in rural areas can continue to work together outside of class even if they live miles away.</div>
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Students can have several study groups as well so that they can have one for each of their classes. This keeps students organized and teachers happy! Students can also upload files so that they can keep their homework, reports, study sheets, etc. right on the website as well. This seems like one stop shopping for virtually studying! Another great feature of ThinkBinder is that there is a button that can be dragged to your browser's toolbar that allows students to bookmark and automatically share online materials with their study group. So if students are researching and find a good website, they click on the Bind button, choose which study group they want to share it with and the url is automatically posted into the newsfeed for that study group. This is also a wonderful way of keeping track of those urls so that you can site your sources later on.<br />
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You and your students should check out ThinkBinder at <a href="http://www.thinkbinder.com/">www.thinkbinder.com</a>. Here is a video that gives even more information:<br />
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<br />Clarena M. Renfrow, M.Ed.http://www.blogger.com/profile/09483064540883357616noreply@blogger.com4Fair Haven, VT 05743, USA43.6726259 -73.300123343.3049799 -73.9455703 44.0402719 -72.654676299999991tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7512654410053953335.post-58118362912776258782012-08-20T08:19:00.002-04:002020-06-11T23:01:09.800-04:00Notability - An App To Take Note Of<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.298); font-family: helvetica, sans-serif; text-size-adjust: auto;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Text-x-generic_with_pencil.svg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1920" data-original-width="1600" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsTXOChzXLD1IJ9JRhpn2gW9vzYlJRzG5qmbgzvA2Ze5RcCL_lh8-V3n-rlE502Ve4e0c0XP6xDtWKJTGDN2EPz1lw1iZBVM7bsh00MeMyrWGLsm5wYYqKCpbc6r3UTE_zut4CV2y33Lc/w167-h200/Essay.svg.png" width="167" /></a></div>Notability is an app that is highly versatile and will work for all kinds of learners. A colleague of mine recently talked to me about how she uses it with her students with special needs. I was impressed.<br /><br />Imagine an app where you can open up any PDF and write, draw, impose pictures and shapes, highlight text, type and record audio right in it and you have notability. As a teacher, you can send your students via email a PDF article, drawing, mind map , worksheet, quiz, etc. Students open the attachment from their iPad into Notability and can now work with it and when they're done, email it back to their teacher for review or correction. Students who because of motor issues can't key or draw, can record their answers, thoughts, notes etc. right in the app for easy playback. You can also start notes from scratch.<br /><br />This app is a must have for your iPad or iPhone because it is so easy to use, flexible and practical. Check it out in the app store. <br /><br />Try it out and leave a comment letting us know how you like it and use it with students.</span></div>
Clarena M. Renfrow, M.Ed.http://www.blogger.com/profile/09483064540883357616noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7512654410053953335.post-87473087478282379852012-05-25T11:39:00.004-04:002020-06-12T13:55:49.854-04:00Creative Book Builder App for iPadI have been taking a lot of time looking at different iPad apps that would be useful for students and teachers. I just love iPads and the potential they hold for teaching, learning, differentiation, creativity and project based learning opportunities. One of the biggest pluses to iPads is that they work almost instantaneously while computers take a while to even turn on and because of this class time is not wasted.
<br /><br />The apps that are available for the iPad are also truly amazing and abundant. Strangely enough, these days a challenge for teachers is finding the right app because there are so many to choose from. One terrific app is <a href="http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/creative-book-builder/id451041428?mt=8" target="_blank">Creative Book Builder</a>. I recently went to a VITA Learn workshop where I learned about this app. I have been playing around with it and find it has a ton of potential. What it does is very easily allow the user to build an eBook using text, links, images, video, and audio that can be sent right to iBooks to be viewed. Since it functions on the iPad, the app is completely integrated so that student created videos and images can be quickly imported into their book as well as student created music from Garage Band. This eliminates any issues of copyright!<br />
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Teachers can create eBooks for their students complete with all the multimedia information that their students need to be successful. Students can use the app to create innovative multimedia products demonstrating their learning which can be used as their assessments. I highly encourage you to check out this amazing app. It is worth every penny and more at $3.99.<br />
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See it in action in this YouTube video. It isn't in English, but you can clearly see what he is doing and he does a great job demonstrating how the app works. No translations needed.<br />
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<br />Clarena M. Renfrow, M.Ed.http://www.blogger.com/profile/09483064540883357616noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7512654410053953335.post-37750315144797685702012-02-17T22:41:00.002-05:002020-06-12T13:49:24.685-04:00Finding Your Voice With VoiceThread<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>
I have been using VoiceThread for a long time now and frankly can't believe that I haven't blogged about it before. If you don't know what a VoiceThread is, then you are in for a pleasant surprise. A VoiceThread is kind of like a collaborative audio blog type presentation tool that allows you to use pictures, videos, and documents to make your story known. You can also draw in color on a picture to make your point as your audio plays.<br />
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Here is an example of how you could use it in the classroom as an assessment/culminating activity.<br />
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You assign your students to groups and allow them to pick a topic to research. The group researches their topic and begins to shape the material into a presentation. They use VoiceThread by uploading their pictures and video that they have taken/gathered to accompany scripts that they have written to teach others what they have learned. They create their VoiceThread and then ask their peers to view and make audio comments/ask questions on the material. The original student group then addresses the questions by adding more audio to the VoiceThread. They then make it public to share their learning with the world. Teachers can also browse content to find information that they may wish to use to illustrate concepts that they are presenting to their class.<br />
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This is a wonderful tool that you just have to check out. There is a free version and a paid version. Schools can purchase site licenses as well. However, older students can create their own free account which will work just fine for projects. Classroom teachers can have a class account to use with their younger students. Check out this highly collaborative and unique tool by watching the VoiceThread below and by going to the link!<br />
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Here is an example of a VoiceThread made by 7th graders on creating safe passwords and you can browse at VoiceThread to find many more examples of student work.<br />
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<a href="http://www.voicethread.com/" target="_blank">www.voicethread.com </a><br />
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<br />Clarena M. Renfrow, M.Ed.http://www.blogger.com/profile/09483064540883357616noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7512654410053953335.post-78176522802798312152011-10-12T09:33:00.002-04:002020-06-13T14:50:22.868-04:00Gapminder World - Minding the Gap<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://ccsearch.creativecommons.org/photos/085a3dff-1d2c-4a1d-bd34-a693d55cea48" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="352" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7OznVHATsf0FQUVfgJ0R9GbLjMh_rqueB7GEs6ciGCk_CviB1qyjev9HNIOSq01BNZyIgR3ULSf1OrDw9mSe57P1t2Iigpyij7i25yICQ-fZrN3A4UEIM3bZJ_twHyGDwT139pIInsn4/s320/gap.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>The web 2.0 tool, Gapminder World, was the brainchild of Ola Rosling, Anna Rosling Rönnlund and Hans Rosling. Their mission was to create a more interesting way to view fact based statistical information about the world in which we live and view it over time using software they called Trendalyzer. Google has now acquired the software and the developers who worked on the software initially are still hard at work creating new videos, pdf documents and flash animations to produce fascinating information on how the world has changed over time. For example, you can look at how age expectancy and income level are related while viewing the changes over a hundred years. There are plenty of tutorial videos and PDF files to show you how to do this on the teacher section of the site: <a href="http://www.gapminder.org/for-teachers/">Gapminder for Teachers</a>. There is even a desktop version so that you do not have to be online to use Gapminder. Gapminder has also included some teaching guides such as the one called <a href="http://www.gapminder.org/GapminderMedia/GapPDFs/GapminderTeachersGuide200years/GapminderTeachersGuide200years.pdf">200 Years that Changed the World</a>. <br />
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This site is simply filled with factual information for use with your classes. This site is not just just for math and geography teachers! All students can benefit from learning to use this site to access statistics on all kinds of information on health, wealth, HIV, human development, money, reducing childhood mortality, income distributions, marriage, employment rates and the list goes on and on. Teachers, check it out and Mind the Gap at <a href="http://www.gapminder.org/">www.gapminder.org</a> today!<br />
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<a href="http://www.gapminder.org/world/#$majorMode=chart$is;shi=t;ly=2003;lb=f;il=t;fs=11;al=30;stl=t;st=t;nsl=t;se=t$wst;tts=C$ts;sp=5.59290322580644;ti=2009$zpv;v=0$inc_x;mmid=XCOORDS;iid=phAwcNAVuyj1jiMAkmq1iMg;by=ind$inc_y;mmid=YCOORDS;iid=phAwcNAVuyj2tPLxKvvnNPA;by=ind$inc_s;uniValue=8.21;iid=phAwcNAVuyj0XOoBL_n5tAQ;by=ind$inc_c;uniValue=255;gid=CATID0;by=grp$map_x;scale=log;dataMin=295;dataMax=79210$map_y;scale=lin;dataMin=19;dataMax=86$map_s;sma=49;smi=2.65$cd;bd=0$inds=">Tutorial Video</a>Clarena M. Renfrow, M.Ed.http://www.blogger.com/profile/09483064540883357616noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7512654410053953335.post-74563206647699198102011-09-23T09:10:00.000-04:002011-09-23T09:12:08.910-04:00Popplet - Simple, Versatile Way to Present Information<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Yesterday a colleague, Dave Herren, told me about Popplet. I explored the web 2.0 tool and was very impressed by its' simplicity and versatility. It can be used as a mind mapping tool, poster board, and presentation medium. It allows users to share their creations and is therefore also collaborative. You can make your popplets public or just choose who you wish to have access. You can change the colors of the bubbles and text, add Flickr pictures, YouTube videos, pictures from your computer or Facebook page, Google Maps with a specific address, and pictures of products from Amazon. <br />
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You can add your own comments to each Popple too. Looking over the features, I also saw where you can export your Popplets to PDF or Image formats in order to print it out and even link different Popplets together.<br />
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Teachers we have another amazingly simple, versatile, efficient and colorful way for our students (or for ourselves) to present information. Below is a link of an example of a Popplet definitely worth looking at and getting some ideas for the classroom. Napoleon: History <a href="http://popplet.com/app/#/489">http://popplet.com/app/#/489</a>.<br />
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Here is the link to the main Popplet information page where you can sign up, watch a video on how it works and get other information such as how you can get the iPad App too! This web 2.0 tool is in Beta now and I definitely recommend checking it out and introducing it to your students. <br />
<br />Clarena M. Renfrow, M.Ed.http://www.blogger.com/profile/09483064540883357616noreply@blogger.com033 Mechanic St, Fair Haven, VT 05743, USA43.603516 -73.27021843.6020785 -73.2726855 43.6049535 -73.2677505tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7512654410053953335.post-52895958191294384722011-09-04T19:45:00.002-04:002020-06-13T14:58:09.562-04:00I'm Flipping for Flipboard!!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://ccsearch.creativecommons.org/photos/47ff082b-0c58-4197-a4d0-d1503c58d459" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1024" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhA1SLh0l8ShypHZf_q5KiIk50Xs33VoZDwW8v0CmhF8Jfptp3K8L2wtsMkN1ffrwV46cxzsbqNdx4gowcPaLBjDjGERuujcAtft4JSJhmjVNvy18QFnmv1PlVxLjvuvylyazJ-OsHqYrs/w320-h240/flip.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Flipboard is a free app for the iPad and it is my favorite app of late! Flipboard allows you to take all kinds of online information from Twitter, Facebook, News, RSS feeds, Flickr, and various other sources of information and lets you read it in a magazine like format. All the pictures and links are spread before you like an informational smorgasbord! You can check your news-feed on Facebook, or search Twitter for real-time information. <br />
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Teachers and students can use Flipboard as a way of creating their own personal learning networks by subscribing to the sources of information that fire <div><br /></div><div><br /><font size="1"><a data-v-106f2c17="" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/71929898@N00/4969264301" rel="noopener" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #ed592f; cursor: pointer; font-family: "Source Sans Pro", sans-serif; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">"anyone "turned a page" slowly in flipboard? this is what you get:"</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Source Sans Pro", sans-serif;"> </span><span data-v-106f2c17="" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #333333; font-family: "Source Sans Pro", sans-serif;">by <a data-v-106f2c17="" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/71929898@N00" rel="noopener" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #ed592f; cursor: pointer; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">robzand</a></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Source Sans Pro", sans-serif;"> is licensed under </span><a class="photo_license" data-v-106f2c17="" href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/?ref=ccsearch&atype=rich" rel="noopener" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #ed592f; cursor: pointer; font-family: "Source Sans Pro", sans-serif; text-decoration-line: none; text-transform: uppercase;" target="_blank">CC BY-SA 2.0</a></font></div><div><br /></div><div>their imagination. In the classroom, it can be used as a research tool for news, and articles as well as real-time information. Just imagine searching for information about a current event using Facebook and Twitter to find posts from the people who are living through the event! Students doing any kind of research can use the search feature to find topical information. The information and pictures can be emailed, or printed out. This app is really amazing! I highly recommend it for personal and school use. Here are some links to get more information!<br />
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A YouTube demonstration of the app: <br />
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How one teacher uses it: <a href="http://appsineducation.blogspot.com/2011/02/flipboard.html">http://appsineducation.blogspot.com/2011/02/flipboard.html</a><br />
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More information: <a href="http://flipboard.com/">http://flipboard.com/ </a><br />
<br /></div>Clarena M. Renfrow, M.Ed.http://www.blogger.com/profile/09483064540883357616noreply@blogger.com03435 Monument Hill Rd, Castleton, VT 05735, USA43.723474896114794 -73.12542.275485396114796 -75.6518555 45.171464396114793 -70.5981445tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7512654410053953335.post-36063056642512513552011-05-23T13:33:00.001-04:002020-06-12T13:50:05.083-04:00iHomework Gets Students Organized<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>
While I was searching around for cool "apps" the other day (this has become a hobby of mine), I came across iHomework for iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch. After downloading and playing with it a bit, it made me want to go back to school just so I could use it for my classes! This app has it all. No need to carry around paper and pencil to keep track of your assignments, homework, readings, and tasks. It also allows you to enter your course schedules and teacher information for easy reference. The app also lets you put in your assignment grades so that you can track your overall course progress. Then it can sync all information to your computer whether it be a Mac or PC. Students, Teachers, Parents and guardians will love this app! Of course, not every student has an "i" device though many students do. For the ones that do, this is an exceptional app and is rated overall as 4 out of 5 stars in the App Store. <br />
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When students are organized with assignments, due dates and other resources, they are more likely to do well in school. This app will keep all the those little pieces of paper where they have written their assignments off of the floor of their locker and into a device where they can easily find the information that they need. <br />
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Here is an <a href="http://www.blogger.com/%3Ciframe%20width=%22425%22%20height=%22349%22%20src=%22http://www.youtube.com/embed/3iAJ2m-7sHY%22%20frameborder=%220%22%20allowfullscreen%3E%3C/iframe%3E">instructional video</a> on how to use the iHomework app and you can follow them on <a href="http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=56418506397&ref=search">Facebook</a> as well. They have a website where you can get <a href="http://ihomework.pilone.org/iOS.html">more information</a>.<br />
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If you currently use this app or are trying it now, please leave a comment and let everyone know how it has worked for you.Clarena M. Renfrow, M.Ed.http://www.blogger.com/profile/09483064540883357616noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7512654410053953335.post-11398908620219759052011-04-25T13:10:00.005-04:002020-06-13T14:35:32.051-04:00Dabbling with Dabbleboard!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://ccsearch.creativecommons.org/photos/73a7f090-ebe8-4098-8759-dde9fc4a1a3a" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="499" data-original-width="226" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRcOY5jPY7zqGQA0i-kqzLuo1sZj3BJthfJzyT7eeDG_t2Py3K5irmgnEXnUUEDhtiYa7LeTiC7X9SsOsuglpcbqMBhyLV5ld1dAM4gNm5oCF3YXQzw4yWEtZCRtVetGlU3VoF8U-cRgE/s320/dabbleboard.jpg" /></a></div>Dabbleboard is a web 2.0 collaborative tool that allows you to draw, create mind maps, brainstorm, demonstrate concepts and so much more. This is a fantastic tool to use with your interactive whiteboard! It is so incredibly fun and easy to use that anyone can do it! This is a wonderful teaching and learning tool. I can envision teachers using it to illustrate concepts they are teaching and students using it to create mind maps, concept maps, organizational charts, mock ups, flow charts, diagrams, building plans, illustrations, and do demonstrations. This tool is different because it allows you to work collaboratively, and draw both naturally and spontaneously as well as open a back channel on the site at the same time for even better collaboration!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: georgia, serif;">According to the Dabbleboard site, here are the top ten reasons to use Dabbleboard.<br />
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<span style="font-family: georgia, serif;">Here are the Top 10 Reasons you should use Dabbleboard:</span></div>
<div id="reasons">
<ol type="1">
<li> Dabbleboard is <b class="highlightbg">easy and fun to use</b>. Unlike other whiteboard applications, Dabbleboard feels as natural to use as a marker on a whiteboard, or a pencil on a sheet of paper. </li>
<li> Dabbleboard is <b class="highlightbg">fast</b>. Since you don't need to spend time constantly changing tools in the toolbar, you can draw much faster. </li>
<li> Dabbleboard is <b class="highlightbg">flexible</b>. Everything you draw can be moved, resized, deleted, and replicated. </li>
<li> Dabbleboard produces <b class="highlightbg">pretty</b> drawings. Okay, we admit you don't need your whiteboard drawings to look like works of art.</li>
<li> Dabbleboard lets you easily <b class="highlightbg">reuse previously-made drawings</b>. With drag-and-drop simplicity, you can add drawings to your personal library, and copy something from the library to your current drawing. </li>
<li> Dabbleboard allows <b class="highlightbg">sharing and real-time collaboration</b> with anyone anywhere in the world. </li>
<li> Dabbleboard works with <b class="highlightbg">hardware you already have</b>, including your favorite computer. </li>
<li> Dabbleboard <b class="highlightbg">works with other software</b> you already use. </li>
<li> Dabbleboard is <b class="highlightbg">secure</b>. Unless you make your drawing public, each drawing can only be viewed by those you've shared it with, and by no one else. </li>
<li> Dabbleboard is <b class="highlightbg">free</b>! We want to help the world think and communicate visually, and we won't let a little money get in our way. We also offer Pro accounts at reasonable prices.</li>
</ol>
Take a look at this video that demonstrates how easy Dabbleboard is to use. <a href="http://dabbleboard.com/tour">http://dabbleboard.com/tour<br />
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Then, check out this link to learn more about Dabbleboard and sign-up if you would like to start using this cool tool: <a href="http://dabbleboard.com/">http://dabbleboard.com</a><br />
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<span style="font-family: georgia, serif; font-size: 11pt; font-weight: normal;"><a href="http://dabbleboard.com/"></a></span></div>
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Clarena M. Renfrow, M.Ed.http://www.blogger.com/profile/09483064540883357616noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7512654410053953335.post-85840203160536581702011-03-29T13:45:00.001-04:002020-06-12T13:52:15.843-04:00Apps for Digital Storytelling: Easy and Awesome!There are two apps that can be used for creating digital stories that I highly recommend. They are easy to use and can be used for all age levels. One is called StoryKit and the other one is StoryRobe. They both work on an iPod Touch, iPhone and iPad. StoryKit is free and allows the user to use pictures, text and voice to create a story. Students can use it to take pictures of their field trip with narrative notes, record their lab experiment with a narrative, do creative writing projects, conduct interviews, and create any other project where they would like to tell a story. They can take their own pictures for the project, narrate their story verbally to go with the pictures and add text for emphasis. When the story is completed it can be shared via the web! Viewers can have the story read to them or chose to read it on their own. The web address is private so that teachers and students can share it with whomever they wish. The story will also be on their mobile device for easy viewing. <br />
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StoryRobe works much the same way, except that the story is only told verbally and you have the options of uploading the story to YouTube or emailing it to someone. StoryRobe costs only 99 cents. Even if you share your digital story, it will still remain on your mobile device for easy viewing just like StoryKit.<br />
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Both of these apps are wonderful for creating alternate means of assessments for students, recording important information, taking verbal notes with pictures, creating literature, and sharing information. Any content area can use this technology. Please check these apps out at the urls below. I give both of these apps a 2 thumbs up!<br />
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StoryKit: <a href="http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/storykit/id329374595?mt=8">http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/storykit/id329374595?mt=8</a><br />
StoryRobe: <a href="http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/storyrobe/id337670615?mt=8">http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/storyrobe/id337670615?mt=8</a>Clarena M. Renfrow, M.Ed.http://www.blogger.com/profile/09483064540883357616noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7512654410053953335.post-90455510829452451972011-02-24T13:19:00.002-05:002020-06-13T15:05:15.501-04:00A Personalized Newspaper Created from Twitter? Really?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://ccsearch.creativecommons.org/photos/0976a4cb-aae9-4508-8fb5-991be4538905" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="500" height="192" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPKgRtkEgM1wauh5RBfdpLusf2RKvbP3sbk_bAcaMfikLVFf8Lsb-A2hy5kVnQrJjkuqLPI4sfMWp13uObM2z8yRPRTCJuZGhx_rk_EPwZcAPTj3BWZwqH-Yp5QysXgKHMG7sbz8HmatE/w200-h192/li.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>Paper.li is a tool that uses Twitter or Facebook to create a personalized digital newspaper based on your interests. It is very easy to create and takes just a couple of minutes. I tried it out and created a newspaper for myself using technology as the focus in less than 2 minutes! Check it out: <a href="http://paper.li/CRenfrow/1298570025">http://paper.li/CRenfrow/1298570025 </a><br />
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What makes this a wonderful educational tool is the fact that students and teachers can have a personalized newspaper to read based on their interests, or specific content being studied in the classroom. The newspaper automatically updates itself every 24 hours to get the newest information on your topic. All you need is a Twitter or Facebook <div>account to begin. Because Facebook is usually filled more with personal socialization information, I believe that using Twitter to create the newspaper would be better for school use because you can get more newsworthy information, and the latest events happening in the world, etc. Teachers, just imagine being able to have your students (and yourself) receive the very latest real-time information on any given topic that you are studying instantly and having it updated automatically every 24 hours! <br />
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Please check out this tool at: <a href="http://paper.li/">http://paper.li/</a> and create your own digital newspaper today. This is one great tool for creating personal learning networks!</div><div><br /></div><div>Picture attribution: <a data-v-106f2c17="" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/83528664@N00/5613606931" rel="noopener" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #ed592f; cursor: pointer; font-family: "Source Sans Pro", sans-serif; font-size: 16px; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">"The Writing Centers Daily"</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Source Sans Pro", sans-serif; font-size: 16px;"> </span><span data-v-106f2c17="" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #333333; font-family: "Source Sans Pro", sans-serif; font-size: 16px;">by <a data-v-106f2c17="" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/83528664@N00" rel="noopener" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #ed592f; cursor: pointer; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">tengrrl</a></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Source Sans Pro", sans-serif; font-size: 16px;"> is licensed under </span><a class="photo_license" data-v-106f2c17="" href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/?ref=ccsearch&atype=rich" rel="noopener" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #ed592f; cursor: pointer; font-family: "Source Sans Pro", sans-serif; font-size: 16px; text-decoration-line: none; text-transform: uppercase;" target="_blank">CC BY-SA 2.0</a></div><div><br /></div>Clarena M. Renfrow, M.Ed.http://www.blogger.com/profile/09483064540883357616noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7512654410053953335.post-7328452867673961942011-01-10T12:15:00.001-05:002020-06-12T13:51:37.046-04:00My Study Bar is Just What the Teacher Ordered!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>I am amazed by this tool. It was designed originally for use with students with Dyslexia by a team at RSC Scotland North & Easthowever. However, it has great applications for any student. I can't say enough about the power of this tool. This tool, once installed, stays on top of whatever you are doing on your computer so that it is easy to access whenever it is needed. You can save it to your desktop or install it on a USB drive so that you will have all of your information from whatever computer you use. Using the USB option is a great choice for students who don't use the same computer all the time. My study bar learns from you as you use it so it becomes personalized to your needs.<br />
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It has mind mapping options, calendars, sticky notes, reading assistance such as text to speech reading, a talking dictionary, the ability to change font and background colors to make reading easier, vu Bars for assisting tracking issues, word prediction, spell checking, built in keyboarding lessons, text magnifier, a cursor locater and so much more. This is the perfect tool to assist students with studying, reading and/or writing difficulties however severe or mild and it is free! There are easy access video tutorials for every application. <br />
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This is a <b>MUST</b> check out tool for Special Educators and an absolutely perfect tool for Universal Design for Learning methodology.<br />
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You can download this tool here at the top of the page: <a href="http://www.rsc-ne-scotland.ac.uk/eduapps/mystudybar.php#tutorials">http://www.rsc-ne-scotland.ac.uk/eduapps/mystudybar.php#tutorials</a><br />
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The update patch here for Windows XP or 7: <a href="http://www.rsc-ne-scotland.ac.uk/eduapps/mystudybar_v3.php">http://www.rsc-ne-scotland.ac.uk/eduapps/mystudybar_v3.php</a><br />
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Find tutorials here further down the page: <a href="http://www.rsc-ne-scotland.ac.uk/eduapps/mystudybar.php#tutorials">http://www.rsc-ne-scotland.ac.uk/eduapps/mystudybar.php#tutorials</a><br />
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For more information: <a href="http://www.rsc-ne-scotland.ac.uk/index.php">http://www.rsc-ne-scotland.ac.uk/index.php</a><br />
Clarena M. Renfrow, M.Ed.http://www.blogger.com/profile/09483064540883357616noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7512654410053953335.post-1245820564745333302010-12-08T13:52:00.007-05:002020-06-12T13:50:29.813-04:00Wordia The Visual and Collaborative Dictionary!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>
Wordia is the most interesting dictionary I have ever seen! Not only does it give you definitions of words like regular dictionaries, but it gives you videos that show you the meaning of the word visually! What is even better is that the videos are uploaded from all sorts of people like us! Here is a quotation right from their website. <i>"Like a traditional dictionary, Wordia allows users to search for the spelling, meaning and etymology of a word but what makes Wordia unique is the ability for users to explore the personal connotation of word through video." </i><br />
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Imagine in your classroom having students define important concepts and vocabulary words by creating a video to be uploaded to Wordia. By having your students do this, not only would they be reflecting deeply on the meanings of these words, but also be sharing their learning with a global audience making the assignment very very real! You could have students work collaboratively in groups or individually. This is also a great place for students to look up words especially if they are visual learners. For those teachers using the Universal Design for Learning/Differentiated Instruction, this is a great way to use Web 2.0 tools as alternate learning and assessments paths.<br />
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Here is an example of a video done by a student:<br />
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<a href="http://www.wordia.com/shield_volcano/videos/1301"><span class="link">http://www.wordia.com/shield_volcano/videos/1301</span></a><br />
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<span class="link">Go to Wordia today and check out this exciting new tool at <a href="http://www.wordia.com/wotd/2010/12/8">http://www.wordia.com/wotd/2010/12/8. </a></span><br />
<span class="link">You can sign up for a free account and let the definitions begin!</span>Clarena M. Renfrow, M.Ed.http://www.blogger.com/profile/09483064540883357616noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7512654410053953335.post-84902743069827536372010-10-12T23:14:00.003-04:002020-06-12T13:50:39.066-04:00Dippen' Into Dipity the Multimedia Timeline Maker<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>
Dipity is a kind of search engine that reaches out and finds information on the web about any given topic. You can create your own timeline or view someone else's. You can add your own events and create a timeline from scratch too! This tool can also be used to keep track of what you have been doing on the web or you can make events as a way to keep track of a project.<br />
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It is also a perfect way for a students to demonstrate their understanding of a historical or current event by creating a timeline of what led up to a particular point in history. Students can search for topics that they are gathering information about from websites with RSS feeds, add information to the timeline manually that they find out from other resources like books or websites without RSS feeds, and get realtime information from social networking sites like Facebook, Twitter and several others. What a great tool to use when you are differentiating an assessment. This is a tool that you really need to play with to understand the power and implications for the classroom.<br />
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Take a look and sign up for a free account at: <a href="http://www.dipity.com/">www.dipity.com</a> and check out the tutorial video below that will show you how to create your own timeline!<br />
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<object height="385" width="480"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/8slBz1dtgXM?fs=1&hl=en_US" />
<param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" />
<param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always" />
<embed allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" height="385" src="http://www.youtube.com/v/8slBz1dtgXM?fs=1&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="480"></embed></object>Clarena M. Renfrow, M.Ed.http://www.blogger.com/profile/09483064540883357616noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7512654410053953335.post-56408540677932218092010-09-22T11:14:00.001-04:002020-06-12T13:51:27.968-04:00Cloudlet - Not Just Another Cloud on the Web<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>When I came across this tool, all I could say was WOW! Teachers have spent years trying to get students to refine their Internet searches, use Boolean techniques and yet have continued to watch them try to go through massive amounts of information or just grab the first thing they see when researching a topic. Now there is Cloudlet, which is a free Firefox add on that works with Google to create a tag cloud to help researchers refine their searches easily and quickly! You can see in the picture here to the right that I was searching on the War of 1812. Cloudlet automatically pops up a tag cloud that helps me refine my search. Watch this video to see it in action. You will be impressed.<br />
<a href="http://www.getcloudlet.com/swm.php?page=video">http://www.getcloudlet.com/swm.php?page=video</a><br />
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Try it out today at: <a href="http://www.getcloudlet.com/"><span class="link">http://www.getcloudlet.com</span></a>Clarena M. Renfrow, M.Ed.http://www.blogger.com/profile/09483064540883357616noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7512654410053953335.post-7829526485748200132010-09-11T21:46:00.001-04:002020-06-12T13:51:00.601-04:00Widgetbox - Lets You Make an App for That!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>A colleague showed me <a href="http://www.widgetbox.com/">Widgetbox</a> yesterday and explained how her husband was using it within his school system to create a widget that could be shared on a website or as a phone application for parents to use for quick access to school information.<br />
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Of course, I had to go home and play with it and create a widget of my own! I also created a mobile app for my iPhone that links to my blog, tweets and YouTube channel. It looks just like a tiny little icon on my phone and when pressed looks like this picture and users can choose where they want to go. Whatever they choose automatically comes up on the screen to read or watch videos. It is pretty darn cool! Once you create the mobile widget, you simply take the permalink and go to it from your phone and save it to your home screen to make it an app! Here is the link to my mobile widget to try it out: <a href="http://m.wbx.me/mobile-site-iteachtechnologynow">http://m.wbx.me/mobile-site-iteachtechnologynow</a> Just go to the link from your iPhone and then touch the + sign and choose Add to Home Screen. It then becomes an app on your iPhone! You also have the choice of embedding the widget on your website.<br />
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So, how can we educators use this? A few things come to mind:<br />
<ul><li>quick reference links for community (news, maps, school website)</li>
<li>use widget on teacher websites so students have access to the links you wish them to see</li>
<li>allows students to create widgets of their own for their website and/or phone for quick reference</li>
<li>use other shared widgets that give you access to all kinds of educational information</li>
</ul>Drawbacks are that it doesn't work with all sites, but the site says they are working on that! I would definitely check it out and think about how you can use it with your students and share your ideas by commenting please.<br />
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www.widgetbox.comClarena M. Renfrow, M.Ed.http://www.blogger.com/profile/09483064540883357616noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7512654410053953335.post-54607067022529401912010-06-04T11:00:00.010-04:002020-06-12T13:51:10.115-04:00History Pin - Collecting our World's History One Picture at a Time<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>
History Pin is a brand new site in beta version whose aim is to collect our world's history by collecting old pictures from people around the world. They are working in cooperation with Google Maps. People can upload their old pictures, "pin" them to the location that they were taken on the Google Map and put in an explanation of the picture. The implications for education are huge! Students can find pictures for areas on the map that they are studying and actually view then and now pictures! There may be little stories attached to the pictures as well so students will need to remember to verify for accuracy any information that may have major historical implications. Students can also help with the project by uploading old photos, with permission from parents of course.<br />
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This is an exciting project because old photographs deteriorate and this is a way to preserve them, share personal and cultural history, learn about other countries and their cultural perspectives from people who are sharing their stories of where they came from and who they are. This could potentially be a wonderful way to bring the people of the world closer by seeing images that demonstrate how alike we really are as well as celebrate and understand our differences.<br />
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Check it out at: <a href="http://www.historypin.com/">http://www.historypin.com/</a> and sign up for a free account. Let's all help build the history of our world one picture at a time!<br />
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For more information, you can check out this video: <br />
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<object align="left"><object height="345" width="400"> <param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/FdT3eKdto4w&hl=en_US&fs=1&" />
<param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" />
<param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always" />
<embed allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" height="345" src="http://www.youtube.com/v/FdT3eKdto4w&hl=en_US&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="400"></embed></object></object>Clarena M. Renfrow, M.Ed.http://www.blogger.com/profile/09483064540883357616noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7512654410053953335.post-12304129028860792812010-04-09T12:11:00.004-04:002020-06-12T13:53:38.638-04:00Apple iPad -WOW<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br />
Right now I'm keying this post using the iPad. The keyboard takes a little getting used to for a touch keyboarder like myself, but it works better than I suspected. It is also intuitive and will offer word completion while you key that you accept by simply hitting the spacebar. The screen is large enough to very see very clearly while you browse the Internet. While listening to iTunes, I was surprised that the sound quality was pretty darn good! It looks just like a huge iPod Touch but visually it is so much nicer to use. I can really see what I am keying as well the sites I am visiting on the Internet without having enlarge things like I did on my iPod Touch. I think I am falling In love with this technology! What a wonderful way for students and teachers to have easy and quick access to the Internet for research, have audio or digital textbooks right at their fingertips, and they hardly take up any space at all. <br />
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It will be interesting to see what textbook contracts come through for this technology and what the books will cost. This technology could change the way a classroom operates in a big way. Kudos to Apple and watch out Kindle because now you have some real competition! You can check out the iPad for yourself at <a href="http://www.apple.com/">www.apple.com</a>Clarena M. Renfrow, M.Ed.http://www.blogger.com/profile/09483064540883357616noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7512654410053953335.post-46540940295950536602010-03-31T12:54:00.002-04:002020-06-12T13:54:09.358-04:00Podcasting - An Engaging Tool for Authentic Learning and Assessment<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>Podcasting is a powerful way to share information, tell stories, entertain and assess learning in a creative, engaging and authentic way. OK, it's a great thing, but what is podcasting you ask? Podcasting is using the Internet to host episodes of audio and/or media files that can be heard/seen on the Internet, on your own computer or downloaded. Often, they are captured in "podcatchers" like iTunes which looks for new episodes of a particular podcast to which you have subscribed. Someone explained podcasts to me once by making the analogy between podcasting and an old fashioned radio show. However, now we can make audio podcasts, enhanced podcasts (audio accompanied by pictures) and video podcasts (which are sometimes called vodcasts). This is another way of making a digital story to share with people from all over the world or just your little piece of it. They can be hosted on local networks or your computer so that they are not accessed globally or hosted in the cloud on sites such as podomatic, odeo, or iTunes (there are many others) so that they can be shared with all who would like to listen to them. <br />
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In education, podcasting can be used as an authentic way of learning and assessment. For example, imagine a middle school language arts classroom where the students are beginning to learn about the 9 comprehensive reading strategies. After initial introduction to the strategies, students are asked to work in pairs to create a podcast on a particular strategy. The strategy is to be explained in the podcast and an example given to demonstrate how the strategy is used while reading. An appropriate introduction and conclusion are incorporated into the podcast as well as nice background music. The teacher uses a rubric to assess the students' understanding of the reading strategy assigned, as well as the students' use of the technology. Then the podcasts are shared with the entire community so that all students and parents can learn from the podcasts. By sharing with the community at large, parents and grandparents are now able to better help their children with reading comprehension! The students were able to participate in an fun, engaging and authentic learning experience that benefits their community and feel a sense of pride in their work. This kind of scenario could be done in all content areas.<br />
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Give podcasting a try with your students. You will be glad you did and so will they! Below are some helpful links to get you started!<br />
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<a href="http://www.podomatic.com/">www.podomatic.com</a> to upload, and store your podcasts. You can even create an RSS feed that you can give to iTunes and they will become a podcatcher for your feeds. This has a definite cool factor for students.<br />
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<a href="http://audacity.sourceforge.net/">http://audacity.sourceforge.net/</a> This is a free downloadable software that will let you record your podcast and change it into an mp3. You will also need the <a href="http://audacity.sourceforge.net/help/faq?s=install&item=lame-mp3">lame encoder</a> file to make mp3's in Audacity. Audacity will work on either a Mac or a PC. The site has downloads for both formats.<br />
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Here are some Audacity tutorials: <a href="http://wiki.audacityteam.org/wiki/Category:Tutorial">http://wiki.audacityteam.org/wiki/Category:Tutorial</a><br />
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<a href="http://www.musopen.com/">http://www.musopen.com/</a> is where you can get some music from the public domain for your podcast. <br />
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<b>Good luck!!</b>Clarena M. Renfrow, M.Ed.http://www.blogger.com/profile/09483064540883357616noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7512654410053953335.post-68172891219582873462010-03-11T10:18:00.001-05:002010-03-11T12:52:25.894-05:00Head Magnet - Your Brain in the Cloud<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-XNw3sjXw6BFJMk60L-WiHr15LdFZVSO4svCCxZAaBoFXr4AukuNcoOml7-TuCOJcJJHMjGCfeMkj6CbkSUBwTE-E1JIJcRMIhN_zynyqahRJS8FIvFAGQueWMoWYwZHJ_0HeYwZB-6s/s1600-h/Head_Magnet_Pic.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-XNw3sjXw6BFJMk60L-WiHr15LdFZVSO4svCCxZAaBoFXr4AukuNcoOml7-TuCOJcJJHMjGCfeMkj6CbkSUBwTE-E1JIJcRMIhN_zynyqahRJS8FIvFAGQueWMoWYwZHJ_0HeYwZB-6s/s320/Head_Magnet_Pic.png" width="320" /></a></div>When you log in, Head Magnet greets you warmly and offers you all the information that you have stored in it plus its own suggestions for your personal improvement activities. It considers itself your brain in the cloud because it compartmentalizes information like names, faces, vocabulary, quotations, and anything else you need to remember! It can also create flash cards to help you study. It offers you new information to expand your vocabulary, learn about other countries, as well as offer you games to improve your: spatial reasoning, memory, attention, focus, speed, language, visual perception, problem solving skills, fluid intelligence, reaction time, general health and stress levels. Best of all, it's free!<br />
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This site seems like quite a find in this information based world of ours where we are constantly trying to remember everything. In terms of using it as an educational tool, my initial reaction was that it could serve as a great assistive technology, but then really it is designed to help everyone. I believe that both teachers and students alike (and lets not forget about our administrators) can really benefit from this tool which fits so nicely into UDL (universal design for learning) teaching practices. I encourage you to check it out for yourselves and enhance your brain!<br />
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Link: <a href="http://www.headmagnet.com/">www.headmagnet.com</a><br />
Here is a link where you can explore some of the activities available: <a href="http://headmagnet.com/explore">http://headmagnet.com/explore</a><br />
This is one of the memory games that it links you to: <a href="http://www.lumosity.com/">http://www.lumosity.com/</a>Clarena M. Renfrow, M.Ed.http://www.blogger.com/profile/09483064540883357616noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7512654410053953335.post-56118428784320702012010-03-01T09:15:00.004-05:002020-06-12T13:55:03.933-04:00eyePlorer - A New Vision for Information<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>I was recently introduced to a new Web 2.0 tool called eyePlorer. It is sort of a search engine with a new twist. In eyePlorer, you simple key in a topic you are interested in researching, hit go and watch categorized information called eye spots appear. To see if it is the information that you need, you can click on one of the "eye spots" to get an explanation of that particular piece of information. If this isn't cool enough, you can drag information to a built-in notepad on your screen any information that you would like to keep and it saves your notes from session to session! You can create several different tabs in your notes so that you can keep different topics separated. Seeing is believing, so here is a video that explains how it works. <a href="http://www.blogger.com/goog_1267453363952"> </a><a href="http://en.eyeplorer.com/show/intro.html">http://en.eyeplorer.com/show/intro.html</a><br />
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This tool is definitely worth trying with your students or for yourself. I especially love how when you click on an eye spot, it tells you what the article or piece of information is about so you don't necessarily have to go to the site and read to find out if it is what you need. Try it out the next time you ask your students to do some research. My prediction is that students may be more engaged because of the way eyePlorer works. Leave me a comment and let me know what you think of it!<br />
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Here is the link to eyePlorer so you can check it out! <a href="http://www.eyeplorer.com/show">www.eyePlorer.com/show</a>Clarena M. Renfrow, M.Ed.http://www.blogger.com/profile/09483064540883357616noreply@blogger.com0