Websites
3.15.15
SMART Notebook (Notebook Express)
Notebook Express
We are currently using Notebook Express, which is the online version of SMART Notebook. You can upload a .notebook file to your Google Drive, then go to Notebook Express and open that file.You have the ability to create a .notebook file directly online; however, you will not have access to the gallery or lesson toolkit. If you want to use these extras, you will need to create your file the normal way (in the real SMART Notebook software). You will also need to watch the fonts that you use - Notebook Express has only a limited set.
Now, that said, it is wonderful for use as a whiteboard on the students' computers. Once they access the site, they can choose a marker and use their finger to write or draw directly on the screen. Of course, they can type their text, as well.
Here is a link to an activity I did with the students using Notebook Express.
We are currently using Notebook Express, which is the online version of SMART Notebook. You can upload a .notebook file to your Google Drive, then go to Notebook Express and open that file.You have the ability to create a .notebook file directly online; however, you will not have access to the gallery or lesson toolkit. If you want to use these extras, you will need to create your file the normal way (in the real SMART Notebook software). You will also need to watch the fonts that you use - Notebook Express has only a limited set.
Now, that said, it is wonderful for use as a whiteboard on the students' computers. Once they access the site, they can choose a marker and use their finger to write or draw directly on the screen. Of course, they can type their text, as well.
Here is a link to an activity I did with the students using Notebook Express.
3.14.15
Using Symbaloo for 'Visual Bookmarking'
Let's face it, the bookmarks bar in Chrome is pretty tiny. And it has tiny little icons. For someone using a touch-screen device, the bookmarks are difficult to navigate. Not to mention, there's only so much space before the bookmarks get pushed into a drop-down, out of sight. When something is out of sight, kindergartners ask "Where's [...]" and "How do I [...]" ad nauseum.
To save my sanity, I decided to put our bookmarks into a visual bookmarking site called Symbaloo. With a free account, this site allows you to create an unlimited number of bookmark "tiles" complete with an appropriately-sized icon and text (if desired), and to group those bookmarks in whatever way you want.
Here is the symbaloo I created for my students to use on a daily basis:
To save my sanity, I decided to put our bookmarks into a visual bookmarking site called Symbaloo. With a free account, this site allows you to create an unlimited number of bookmark "tiles" complete with an appropriately-sized icon and text (if desired), and to group those bookmarks in whatever way you want.
Here is the symbaloo I created for my students to use on a daily basis:
As you can see, the tiles are much better suited to use on a touch-screen by a kindergartner.
Creating a tile (adding a link) is a simple process: click on a blank tile, then select "Create a tile", and fill in the information asked for. Now sometimes the site does not grab a full-size icon for the tile. In this case, I simply open a new tab and go to the site, do a screen capture (Shift-PrtScrn on my desktop computer), paste it into Microsoft Paint, crop it to the portion I want to see, and save the file. Then back on the Symbaloo tab, you can choose "Upload an image" and upload the file you just created. You don't have to do this; it just makes the tile look nicer as opposed to the tiny icons that sometimes show up instead.
Now, to have my students get to Symbaloo, I just created this one bookmark on the bookmarks bar. They have already learned that "the tiny little icon in the top left of the screen" is where they go when I tell them to go to Symbaloo, and that will help us get to all the other websites.
Creating a tile (adding a link) is a simple process: click on a blank tile, then select "Create a tile", and fill in the information asked for. Now sometimes the site does not grab a full-size icon for the tile. In this case, I simply open a new tab and go to the site, do a screen capture (Shift-PrtScrn on my desktop computer), paste it into Microsoft Paint, crop it to the portion I want to see, and save the file. Then back on the Symbaloo tab, you can choose "Upload an image" and upload the file you just created. You don't have to do this; it just makes the tile look nicer as opposed to the tiny icons that sometimes show up instead.
Now, to have my students get to Symbaloo, I just created this one bookmark on the bookmarks bar. They have already learned that "the tiny little icon in the top left of the screen" is where they go when I tell them to go to Symbaloo, and that will help us get to all the other websites.
3.14.15
Websites to start them off right
From day one, we started with websites we were already familiar with. These sites are great for giving your students mouse skills practice as well as educational content at the beginning of the year, or even mid-year when they need to learn how to use a touchpad.
Starfall
ABC Mouse (A teacher account is free, and the site tracks student progress and adapts activities to their level. You can also assign activities you want them to work on.)
Sesame Street
PBS Kids
Starfall
ABC Mouse (A teacher account is free, and the site tracks student progress and adapts activities to their level. You can also assign activities you want them to work on.)
Sesame Street
PBS Kids
Inspiration
My inspiration for this site is Kristi Meeuwse of iTeachWithiPads. Although her class has 1:1 iPads, she gives many great ideas for incorporating technology into her lessons. For example, her students do a lot of writing assignments on their iPads (both handwritten and typed). She gives the apps that she uses, and then shows the final product. It will be my job to find comparable Google Play EDU apps and other websites we can use to do similar activities. It is on this page that I intend to keep track of those apps and sites for myself and others to refer to.