Lesson Planner #1

Lesson Planner #1

I'm sure that many of you are aware of several platforms that exist providing lesson planning features; this includes...

• Google Classroom - https://classroom.google.com/h - and
• Edmodo - https://www.edmodo.com/

...however, if educational practitioners are looking for easy to use and simple lesson planners, I'll post some of the tools that educators, that I've supported, were and/or are using.

In general, these tools are a great starting point.

Each tool will enable practitioners to...

• create their lesson plans section by section,
• add rich media such as text, pictures and video files,
• collaborate with their peers and
• share their resources with their learners.

We'll start today with LearnBoost - https://www.learnboost.com/tour/lessonplans - an excellent tool to help educational practitioners create lesson plans.

Users can start building their lesson plan section by section and with the click of a button

USA Users will be able to attach Common Core State Standards to their lesson plans.

All users can enrich their lesson plans with media files. pictures, documents and any material they want.

LearnBoost also provides an Evaluation section where users can reflect on their planning and make sure their lessons meet their goals.
If you give LearnBoost a try or have already used LearnBoost, do share your feedback, positive and/or negative, in the comments.
Thank you.

Collaborative Whiteboard Services
On-line, collaborative, whiteboards can be great tools for...

• hosting quick review sessions for learners. 
• learners to conduct on-line study sessions with each other.

Here are four free on-line whiteboard that I've already posted about...

• Crayon - https://www.cr4yon.com/ - quite recently
• DrawChat - https://draw.chat/index.html
• Stoodle - https://stoodle.ck12.org/ and
• Webroom - https://webroom.net/

Today it's heads-up for two more free on-line whiteboards...

1. Skype Interviews - https://www.skype.com/en/interviews/ - is a free Microsoft service that was developed for employers to use to interview potential employees.
   It was specifically designed with coders and programmers in mind as there is a code editor component that lets candidates display their skills in real-time.
   Microsoft has also added a whiteboard to Skype Interviews.
   The whiteboard in Skype Interviews allows learners to draw on and share a virtual whiteboard while in a call and Educators can also type on the whiteboard.
   A few pre-made shapes are also available to add to the whiteboard to create flowcharts. And... 
2. Realtime Board - https://realtimeboard.com/ - is another on-line whiteboard tool.
   At its basic level Realtime Board provides a blank canvas on which users can type, draw, and post pictures.
   Users can connect elements on their boards through a simple linking tool.
   Realtime Board includes an activity tracking feature. This feature lets you see the changes that have been made to a shared Realtime Board whiteboard.
   

If you give Skype Interviews and/or Realtime Board  or have already used Skype Interviews and/or Realtime Board, do share your feedback, positive and/or negative, in the comments.
Thank you.

Teach Machine Learning
Software developer Dale Lane has created Machine Learning for Kids - https://machinelearningforkids.co.uk/#!/worksheets - a collection of free projects that teach learners how to build with this technology.
Each project is done in Scratch - https://scratch.mit.edu/ - a widely used educational coding platform, and includes a downloadable, step-by-step guide.

Educators, parents and/or learners can choose from...

• easier projects such as Make Me Happy (create a character that smiles if you say nice things to it and cries if you insult it) or
• more advanced ones like Headlines (train a computer to recognize headlines from national newspapers).

Throughout the lessons available, there are explanations for what just happened in each step, and what comes next.

The process is accessible and intuitive, and educators or parents who try it out will no doubt learn something, too.

If you give Machine Learning for Kids and Scratch a try or have already used Machine Learning for Kids and Scratch, do share your feedback, positive and/or negative, in the comments.
Thank you.

Simple Collaborative Whiteboard

Simple Collaborative Whiteboard
Today's post is more of a "HeadsUp", introducing Crayon - https://www.cr4yon.com/ - a new service in the collaborative whiteboard market.

Crayon is still in an "alpha" phase so there should be more features coming in the future.

Educators can use Crayon without creating an account. 

How does it work?

Well, to make a collaborative whiteboard...

• go to the Crayon site,
• enter your name, and
• enter a name for your whiteboard space.

A whiteboard will open

• copy its URL and
• send it to the people you want to collaborate with you.

NOTE:

1. Crayon currently doesn't offer anything other than a whiteboard on which users can draw/write. 
2. There isn't any kind of chat option so there is the potential for you to write over your collaborators if you're not already talking via Skype, phone, or Google Hangouts at the same time.

I like its simplicity and its potential. 

 

If you give Crayon a try or have already used Crayon, do share your feedback, positive and/or negative, in the comments. 

Thank you.

Windows 10’s Video Editor
"What Video Editor?" I hear many of you ask!

Yes Windows 10 has a video editor, yes you could say "it's not easy to find" or "it's "Hidden" 

It works a little like Windows Movie Maker or Apple iMovie and it can be used to...

• trim videos (Focus on the best moments)
• Add slo-mo (super slow to real time)
• Save photos (save frames from a video)
• Draw (add an artistic touch)
• Create a video with text (Customise with music, 3D effects and more) and
• Add 3D effects (create rain, add confetti and more)

Wow, so where is it?

These features are part of the Window's Photos app. 

To edit any of your video files, open a file in the Photos app.

Learners and/or practitioners can do this right from File Explorer by...

• right-clicking the video file, and then
• select Open With > Photos.

The video will open and play in the Photos app. 

To edit the video, click “Edit & Create” on the toolbar.

You’ll see a variety of video editing tools that can be used. Click any one of the tools to use it.

That's just a taste of what can be done, give it a go, I think learners and/or practitioners will enjoy it; it's FREE after all!

If you Trim, Slow, Take Photos of, or Draw On any Video using Windows 10’s Video Editor or have already have used Windows 10’s Video Editor, do share your feedback, positive and/or negative, in the comments. Thank you.

Collaborative Bookmarking
Educators and learners need to be equipped with tools that will enable them to curate, save and share the content they come across on-line. 

I've already posted about some of the tools educators find useful, including...

• Educlipper - https://educlipper.net/main.html
• Feedly - https://feedly.com/i/welcome
• LiveBinders - http://www.livebinders.com/
• Padlet - https://padlet.com/ and
• SymbalooEDU - https://www.symbalooedu.com/

Today I'm adding a couple more...

• Pinterest - https://www.pinterest.co.uk/ - Educators and learners can use Pinterest to discover, search for and save interesting content from the web. Pinterest's Boards provide a great way to organise any saved content. Users can create boards for specific topics and each time they come across a piece of content relevant to any of their boards, click on the Pinterest button to pin and save it there.
  

• Evernote Web Clipper - https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/evernote-web-clipper/pioclpoplcdbaefihamjohnefbikjilc?hl=en - for learners and/or educators using Evernote, this is a must have tool. It allows users to easily clip web content and save it to their Evernote account making it accessible across different devices. Users can...
• clip any article or web page,
• use text and visual callouts to draw attention and
• share via email or via a unique URL.

If you give Pinterest and/or Evernote Web Clipper a try, or have already have used either or both of them, do share your feedback, positive and/or negative, in the comments.

Thank you.

Alternative for a better on-line Free Encyclopedia

Today’s post...

Wikipedia, the world’s biggest publicly editable encyclopedia, is frowned upon by many educators but, in spite of that, it’s the first choice for many to "turn to learn" about any new topic. 

As good as it already is, Wikipedia is primarily a text-based encyclopedia and Educators are aware that one-size doesn't fit all and some people learn better through audio-video, rather than text. 

That’s where VideoWiki - https://www.videowiki.org/ - comes in.

The idea, as founder Pratik Shetty explains, is that a multimedia web needs a multimedia encyclopedia. 

VideoWiki takes existing Wikipedia entries and automatically adds contextual video to them, as well as audio through text-to-speech technology.

In addition to this, any reader can edit the articles to add...

• images,
• GIFs, or
• videos wherever they feel it is most needed.

NOTE: It is very "Early Days" and there’s still a lot of work to be done.

However VideoWiki is ideal to hear Wikipedia entries out loud instead of reading them, and some videos are ideal for addressing learner/educator needs. 

Once a Wikipedia article has been converted (this can take up to 5 min) the resulting audio-video is ideal for note taking; the video paused and restarted using the space-bar.

 

If you give VideoWiki a try, or have already have used VideoWiki, do share your feedback, positive and/or negative, in the comments.

Thank you.

Website for STEAM Educators

Having to find an alternative way to post as Facebook hasn't sorted the issue with "My Facebook Page". So today's post has revived my Blog but at least I can post. 

Young Scientist Lab - https://www.youngscientistlab.com/ - is an educational platform developed out of a partnership between Discovery Education and 3M. 

Young Scientist Lab provides...

• a wide variety of interactive and engaging activities,
• USA standards-aligned resources and
• teaching tools to help learners with their science learning.

As for educators, Young Scientist Lab provides...

• resources to help make science teaching more interactive, engaging and fun in learning environments. 
• lesson plans tailored specifically to meet learning needs. 
• various science topics relevant to learners lives and 
• access to interactives that help learners discover the real-world science around them and make connections to what they are learning in their courses.

The Students section provides learners with...

• numerous learning materials to help them explore the world of science in fun and engaging ways. 
• activities designed to capture their curiosity and develop their scientific thinking skills; these activities are based ‘on classic scientific discoveries; some dating back over 200 years. 
• a section called Science at Work where students get to meet ‘some of the 3M Scientists that research and experiment every day to innovate for the future.’

If you give The Young Scientist Lab a try, or have already have used resources and/or Lesson Plans etc., from The Young Scientist Lab, do share your feedback, positive and/or negative, in the comments. 

Thank you.