Why I became a digital learner and educator

I have recently discovered Animoto and I love it!  I just used the
trial version, which is why the watermark still appears on my video
about why I am becoming a digital learner and educator.  Here is the
link for my video right here

but I also have posted the video right below too!  Please let me know your thoughts on this video - I value constructive criticism as I venture along this unfamiliar digital path.

Happy learning!

A little learning with SUPER WHY ABC Adventures: Alphabet by PBS KIDS

Hi,

Today in EDUC 3239, we discussed picking videos to help strengthen
and reinforce what students are learning.  When picking a video, you
need to make sure that it suits your students needs, and the curriculum
or topic that is currently being covered.  One I enjoyed was the SUPER WHY ABC Adventures.  It
goes over the alphabet and basic literacy with children in a fun and interactive format!

I will definitely be using an interactive video like this in my classroom! As we learned today, active "doing" learning is the most efficient way to learn; one remembers 90% of the information taught when it is taught in an interactive way.  For comparison, just listening, you only remember 20% of the information! That is crazy!
Happy learning!

Exploring Voki!

Today, I explored Voki during EDUC 3239.  Voki is an educational tool that allows educators and students to create their own talking avatar.  It was fun to create a Voki avatar and have it speak.  The nice thing about Voki is that you do not have to use your own voice; you can type in a message and choose what voice you want to use.  While exploring Voki, I did learn that you have to spell words phonetically or else it will not sound exactly how you want it to!

I just made a new Voki. See it here:

I could see myself using this in the classroom to engage students in making presentations, share their thinking, or even develop projects for drama.  I really like how students who are not necessarily comfortable using their own voice have the option to type their thinking in and have another voice say it.

Voki is very cool and I recommend trying it out!



Happy exploring friends!

Today.... Wiki-ing

Wikispaces. (2015). Theworld's best Wiki platform [Screenshot]. Retrieved from https://www.wikispaces.com/

Today in class we learned how to use Wikispaces.  Wikispaces is different than a blog (this blog for instance) in that its a community where the members can all add to and edit the page.  Wikispaces is great for educators as it provides a space where people can discuss different classroom subjects.  For example, in this course, we looked at an education Wikispace, specifically for technology. We also practiced in the class EDUC 3239 Wiki Sandbox, where we saw firsthand how easy it is to post links to educational websites that are helpful for teaching.

Definitely worth a look!
Happy learning!
Klaasje Prins