Week 5 : Creating Digital Films Online & Animation in the Classroom

This week’s workshop we discovered and explored the wonderful world of digital films online. There are wealth of ICT websites which  enable teachers to incorporate into the classroom.  I will run through the websites covered in our Workshop and lecture this week, illustrating my examples and their uses in Primary Education.

As  an introduction to digital film online, we explored Devolver movie maker, formally dfilm,(http://www.dfilm.com/live/home.html). This website allows you to create your own movie! This enables you to sequence scenes and create dialogue to create a movie. It must be emphasised that this is NOT suitable for primary school aged children, nonetheless a great introduction into digital film making for adults to enjoy.

To see the whole movie, click here:

http://www.dvolver.com/live/movies-450454 

Build your wild self (http://www.buildyourwildself.com/) is a website which allows students to create a wild character using different human parts and then able to choose animal parts to create a wild self character. Check out my example below: 

 A fun and creative way to allow students to create a nonsense character using an array of diverse characteristics. Great as an English exercise where children can create a story about their created character.

Zimmer Twins (http://www.zimmertwins.com/) is a fantastic website that allows you to make your own cartoon from scratch. It is a fun and creative way for teachers to incorporate technology into the classroom. Particularly useful in teaching English and for students who have English as there second language as it helps expand their vocabulary and enables them to develop good writing practices. It is certainly a  fun and positive environment where children can safely explore and exercise their creativity with fun tools that allow them to make their own short cartoons. I have included a stroyboard below to illustrate my attempt creating an animated film using this program:

 

Rollermache: (http://www.abc.net.au/rollercoaster/rollermache/about.htm) is an amazing online website dedicated to animation, the website promotes digital literacy and  media production in a safe creative online environment. What I particularly like about this website is that it was created especially for students in rural areas as a means to create their own content. It caters for all students in all areas; it's a safe, free and accessible to school and home computers.

Reasonably Clever (http://www.reasonablyclever.com/) is a website that allows the creation of characters using online Lego! A fantastic, interactive way for kids to create their own Lego character. We used the 'Classic Kid-Safe Mini-Mizer' link, which ensured that the creations would be safe and appropriate for primary classrooms.

My Lego rock star character.

Sketch Swap (http://www.sketchswap.com/) is a web page that allows you to sketch a picture, and when you press 'submit' you receive a sketch from someone else. What a fun and addictive idea, I must say that I had a few goes at this one. Your own sketches may be used and received by others. My original sketch is below:

Following the submission of this sketch, it was swapped with this picture below:

Ziptales (http://www.ziptales.com.au/)

Ziptales is a brilliant online literacy program, which enables students to read and work through an array of online stories, aimed at comprehension and the development of language skills.  There is a wealth of resources to be used in conjunction with the stories. For each story there are cloze passages, sequencing, multiple choice questions, rhyming and short writing exercises based on the illustrations. This is an interactive and stimulating way for inclusion of all students to enhance literacy engagement and learning.  

Xtranormal, Text-to- Movie (http://www.xtranormal.com/)
Xtranormal enables anyone to make a movie!  It is fast becoming a powerful communication tool of the 21st century. I have included my movie below (I uploaded it on YouTube as well).
This program would be brilliant for integration into the classroom allowing children to create their own movies a means of communicating work through the use of technology.

Games are also in abundance on the web search engine, all rich as tools in their ability to promote powerful learning in the classroom. These games were explored in our Workshop:
Sumdog (http://www.sumdog.com/) - Online maths games to improve numeracy. Here is one that we explored in the lecture: Street Racer:

Play this game http://www.sumdog.com/games/flow.action?game=racing

Stop Disasters (http://www.stopdisastersgame.org/en/home.html) - A brilliant simulation game which enables students to become aware of natural disasters by  teaching children how to build safer villages and cities against disasters. Children will learn playing how the location and the construction materials of houses can make a difference when disasters strike and how early warning systems, evacuation plans and education can save lives (http://www.stopdisastersgame.org/en/home.html). 

This game would be fantastic as an integrated tool in the Humanities/Science Curriculum.

'Tsunami' - Play this game
http://www.stopdisastersgame.org/en/playgame.html




There are so many more games/animation and digital movie making websites suited for integration into the classroom for primary education. We have barely touched the surface.

Photo Story 3 (http://www.windowsphotostory.com/)

I had a lot of fun with this program. Creating your own photo stories! I have included my photo story using my beautiful cats as the starts of the show. You would be able to integrate this program in any of the learning domains, it would be fantastic to use following an excursion; uploading photos taken on what students saw and adding text to tell the story of their experience or as a results record following a science experiment or students could develop a photo story based on a holiday, celebration or special event. The opportunities to incorporate this into the classroom are endless.
Check out my photo story below starring my cats!

Throughout this unit I have been amazed, inspired, engaged, captivated and overwhelmed. It has challenged me and I have come out the other end truly inspired.  Most of all I have enjoyed the wealth of ICT based resources that are available for aspiring teachers to integrate into their classrooms. I am reminded that if I, as an adult, have been enthralled by this exploration, I can only image how powerful it will be in the classroom for primary aged children. I am certainly looking forward to finding out.

Week 4 - Learning Federation Learning Objects (LO) & Inspiration Task

I continue to get blown away by the amount of ICT resources that are available for teachers to integrate into their classrooms! This week’s lecture was a brief introduction to the Learning Federation website (http://www.thelearningfederation.edu.au/default.asp). It is an amazing resource for teachers to integrate technology in their classrooms. The website contains a wealth of resources; interactive multimedia, interactive assessment, collections of digital curriculum resources and an array of teaching ideas in which highlight how teachers can integrate ICT resources into their learning programs. The digital curriculum resources are carefully designed which cater for the needs of all students which address priority curriculum areas such as literacy and numeracy , science, environmental studies, Australian history, LOTE, Business and Indigenous studies (Warning: Digital content on this page may contain references to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people who may have passed away). Have a look at some examples of these below:

Dice Duels Bike Race

This game allows Students explore even and uneven distribution and bias  using interactive tools in a range of dice-based tutorials, activities and games (MATHS)

http://www.thelearningfederation.edu.au/for_teachers/sample_learning_materials/tm_-_maths.html?showcaseObjectID=2204

Radical Hunt – Island Hunt

This game enables students to go on a treasure hunt by discovering the related meaning to each set of Kunji (Japanese) (LOTE)

http://www.thelearningfederation.edu.au/for_teachers/sample_curriculum_content/tm_-_languages.html

In the Workshop we were given the opportunity to experience integrating technology in learning curriculums of literacy and numeracy.We viewed an animated dreamtime story from Dust Echoes which is a series of twelve animated dreamtime story from Central Arnhem Land in Northern Australia (http://www.abc.net.au/dustechoes/dustEchoesFlash.htm) (Warning: Digital content on this page may contain references to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people who may have passed away). We then used the Inspiration program (as introduced in week one) via story mapping, as a means to re-tell the story by cutting and pasting images from the story (I have included my example below). I can see how this enables students to understand concepts, processes and further develop their skills and knowledge in a much more interactive way .

Microsoft excel (http://office.microsoft.com/en-au/), was also explored as a tool for teaching mathematics. Initially we counted the amount of colours in an m&ms packet and recorded it on a tally chart manually, using the following:

We then transferred the data using MS Excel to create a graph using this program (see my attempts below). I found this a much more powerful way to conceptualise and engage in an activity as opposed to just using a maunual tally or via completing a worksheet. I have come to understand that learning objects via a digital means is not replacing concepts that are taught in a learning environment through hands on experiences, but rather as an integrated method into these curriculums to enhance the learning experience of students.



First attempt



Second attempt



What is becoming evident throughout this unit is that the use of technology in the classroom is not only a useful, engaging and an interactive tool, but an essential one. We are now in a world where children are born into technology and depriving them of this in the classroom in the 21^st Century, we are robbing their readiness for the outside world.  If we teach the way we were taught we will undoubtedly contribute to student’s unwillingness and dislike towards learning. This is one of my favourite clips from the movie Ferris Bueller’s Day off, which shows the traditional way in which I was taught many years ago – What not to do!

Uloaded from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C-S54bbX6eA

In contrast here are some inspirational clips that demonstrate the 21^st Century Learner – The Digital Learner:

Uploaded from  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W2j9qw-A0NM

Uploaded from  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l72UFXqa8ZU

Week 3 – Design Briefs /Quia & Protection of Students Online

In this week’s workshop we initially explored the purpose of conducting a design Brief based on an activity Greg Powell set up for us. We were required to ‘make a frog jump’, by only using a small piece of cardboard, a small paper frog and a rubber band. In pairs, we came up with a design in order for this to happen. It was interesting to see the diverse ideas in the class and how they differed in design; we all had the same outcome, making the frog jump. A design brief was then completed which addressed  three dimensions (see example below); Investigating and Designing, Producing and Analysing and Evaluating; within the Design, Creativity and Technology domain of the Victorian Essential Learning Standards (http://vels.vcaa.vic.edu.au/dct/index.html).



A template of the Design Brief used for the 'Make a frog jump' activity


The ‘next level’ from this paper-based structure is to a technology based design, we explored this through Quia 

Quia (http://www.quia.com/web) is a collection of online tools which allows you to create your own online content for every subject at every level. There are many ways in which these can be achieved via quizzes, question banks, surveys and activities. Below is an example of a quiz I created in the workshop using Quia. You can have a go at this quiz via the following link; http://www.quia.com/quiz/2538667.html?AP_rand=570687094

It is indeed a powerful educational tool which allows students to engage in learning in a creative and exciting way therefore allowing children to ‘think’ for themselves. The element of enjoyment certainly adds to its power; I was having so much fun creating quizzes and word games and even more so when we were able to have a go at our fellow student’s developed quizzes. It was evident throughout this exercise that this program provides a safe way for teachers to integrate technology into the classroom, a way to engage students in learning and get them excited about learning. I also appreciate that it is user-friendly; it’s easy to navigate and therefore caters for all learner abilities. Below is an example of the activity ‘Hangman’ created in the workshop using Quia. You can play the game yourself ,  http://www.quia.com/hm/671353.html

Protection of Students Online

Discussed in length this week was the issue of Cyber Safety. Although the internet provides amazing learning and teaching opportunities, it is vital that risks are acknowledged and prevented. Teachers and schools have a responsibility to ensure that a positive, safe cyber community is created when working online, in essence this includes ‘behaving responsibly’ and ‘behaving safely'.

Cyber bullying (bullying via the internet through social networking sites, emails, blogs and other web based programs) has become increasingly a problem and something in which as teachers need to be fully aware of to protect students. In the lecture we were shown a disturbing case in which a student’s privacy was violated through naively divulging personal information. I actually felt ill, yet it is a reality, this is happening now and  I, as a future teacher may be confornted with a similar situation. Click the following view link to view this story:   http://www.teachertube.com/viewVideo.php?video_id=139986

Teachers Resources  

Cyber Smart developed by the ACMA  –  http://www.cybersmart.gov.au/Schools/Teacher%20resources.aspx

A brilliant resource for teachers and for students to combat cyber bullying. There are various Interactive educational cyber safety programs using this website.

More useful resources for teachers in the fight against cyber bullying and safety of children online include:

DEECD  - Cyber safety - http://www.education.vic.gov.au/healthwellbeing/safety/bullying/cyber/policy.htm

Bullying. No way! -  http://www.bullyingnoway.com.au/

We explored, Cyber Detectives (developed by Acma) in which students work through a number of scenarios and issues of online safety and grooming, encouraging young people to think before posting personal information. I love the interactivity and the way in which children can use their problem-solving skills. Click the  below video link to view children’s thoughts and using the program:

http://www.cybersmart.gov.au/Schools/Teacher%20resources/Upper%20primary/Interactive%20Shared%20Learning/Cybersmart%20Detectives/CSD%20Video/Cybersmart%20Detectives%20Video.aspx

Acma now showcases a range of Cybersmart videos on You Tube, about current cybersafety issues including safe social networking, how to address cyberbullying, and protecting personal information for teachers, children, parents and schools. Here is an example

Uploaded from You Tube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oV1SC2krOTE&list=QL&feature=BF

Week 2 - MS Publisher and E-portfolios

In this weeks' Workshop we were exposed to MS Publisher, a desktop publishing application allowing students and teachers to create an array of products; including greeting cards, posters, brochures, calendars etc (http://www.micosroft.com/). Through exploration of this application, it was obvious at the ease in which students and teachers at all levels were able to understand how the program works. We explored this software by engaging in an activity in which we were required to create a brochure of a holiday destination using this application (example entry below). I can certainly appreciate the use of this application as a way in which children can use the web search engine to explore, investigate and research as a means to complete a given task or activity. This can be acheived by exporting images, photos, web links, videos and photos to enhance their presentations. I also appreciate the user friendly aspect of the program, anyone one from beginner to advanced is able to navigate their way around this product.

My brochure explores the wonders of 'Paris'.






Following this activity we were introduced to E-portfolios, these according to Jackie Miers from MaGill Primary School S.A (http://www.teachers.ash.org.au/jmresources/ePortfolio.htm) are described as a collection of work that:
 - reflects an individual’s efforts, achievements and progress over time
- is performance-based and also goal driven
- indicates knowledge and skills and self reflection
- encourages career development and acts as a facilitation for life-long learning


My curiosity into the use of e-portfolios as a means for professional development in my pursuit for a career in education lead me to the extensive work of Dr. Helen Barrett, a pioneer for electronic portfolios and Digital storytelling for lifelong learners (http://electronicportfolios.com/). She describes e-portfolios are a means of ‘transforming’ professional development and can be built to meet many purposes; an environment for reflection on learning, a tool for formative and summative assessment or an asset in searching for employment. Thus, an e-portfolio endeavours not only to serve as a means for getting a job but rather as a means to see a progression into my learning and what has changed over time, it serves as my story of growth and development and not merely as a means to tick the boxes in meeting teaching requirements. Furthermore, it is a means to demonstrate a professional progression and self-reflection of career development and thus acting as a facilitation tool to my own life-long learning journey. I truly believe that this knowledge and development will serve as a powerful assessment not only for myself as a future professional educator but enable me to pass these benefits onto my future students.


Below is a snapshot of the beginning of an e-portfolio using MS Publisher, completed in our workshop this week.

Week 1 : Introduction to Blogs and Inspirations

Our first workshop required us to set up our own blogs using http://www.blogger.com/. This was the first time I had been exposed to the phenomenon of ‘web logging’. My introduction to blogging did not go as smoothly as expected given I was the unlikely one that experienced a ‘tech failure’. My registration worked however my blog was nowhere to be seen. I had another attempt following the workshop and this time, success!


Yes, I facebook, tweet, You Tube and My Space however I am a novice blogger. I have never had my own blog nor have I viewed a blog before. I was therefore curious as to how they can be beneficial in an educational setting. I discovered a wealth of benefits. A professional blog in an educational setting can be set up by a student, a whole class, faculty or Institution. It allows students, teachers and educational professionals to question, reflect and share thoughts, views and experiences as means to communicate and collaborate. What strikes me as most powerful about this form of technology and its use within education is that it provides a new form of interaction and connection to people not only in the community but also globally. It has an enormous space in which students can share their thoughts and ideas; I can imagine this would be a useful tool to use with students who are reluctant or shy about expressing thoughts and ideas in a traditional forum (in front of the class); and a fantastic way to get them ‘thinking’. I also like the way in which parents are able to become involved in their child’s learning and gives students, teachers and parents a sense of being a part of the whole schooling community.


The introduction to the Inspirations software (http://www.inspiration.com/) was amazing. We were able to explore the various functions that the software offered in this first workshop and created an entry based on an idea that we enjoyed (see below).I can certainly see how beneficial its use will be in a classroom not only as a teaching tool by using mind-mapping to present information, idea maps, process flows and other diagrams for thinking; but also as a means to enhance the learning experience of students by encouraging critical thinking, creativity and communication. Students are able to add hyperlinks to specific webpage’s, include videos and record and play sound in various diagrams as well as upload images. Students are then able to export their work as a jpeg file and insert it into their blog. I can certainly see the benefits of these technologies in the classroom and eagerly wait what new technology we will be exploring in the next workshop.

My attempts at the software 'Inspirations'

'Australian Rules Football'

'The five  Food Groups'