Web 2.0 Primer for Newbies - Recently Updated Pages

Teacher Pages

mattdkuykendall — Sun, 26 Aug 2007 20:19:39 CDT

Below is a list of teacher pages. The relevant subject is listed. Hopefully, if you're having a hard time figuring out how to utilize web 2.0 tools, a browse through some of these pages will help spark some ideas!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Subject	URL
AP Comparative Government	www.sascompgov.wetpaint.com

Welcome

mattdkuykendall — Mon, 20 Aug 2007 20:57:47 CDT

This wiki is an extension of a class we're taking called Technology and Learning in a Networked Classroom. This is a collaborative project we're working on and hopefully you find this useful.

Table of Contents
What is Web 2.0?
Purpose for Integrating These Technologies in Your Classroom
Different Tools to Integrate in Your Classroom

Blogs
Wikis
Podcasts
Social Bookmarking
Photo Sharing
RSS
Social Networking--Facebook What?
Twitter

Now What?

When you want to read a different page use the navigation window on the left hand side of the page to click on topic you want to explore or you can come back here, if you like.

Twitter in the Classroom

thekyleguy — Mon, 20 Aug 2007 14:11:19 CDT

What is Twitter?

Twitter is 140 character miniblog that answers the question "What are you doing?". Each post is known as a tweet and users 'follow' the tweets of their network. Often the tweet describe what an idividual is doing, or working on. However there are many more possibilities, tweets can be responses to other tweets, questions to your twitter network, links to interesting resources. It is really hard to wrap one's head around until you start tweeting and build a personal network.

How can it be used in the classroom?

(This is neat question because it has not been used to much extent yet, but there are definitely possibilities.)

Keep students connected through another line of communication. Group members will have an idea of what each other are working on.
Communication for collaboration.
Forces users to be brief and to the point. 140 character limit gives students direction rather than clog the discussion forums.

Twitter can hold students accountable to what they are working on.
Twitter can be used in a call to everyone for assistance like the bat signal was used for Batman.

Examples of use

Horizon Project 2007 - Uses Twitter to connect students from 5 classrooms around the world. In this instance students created a wiki page dedicated to their twitter badges and they could see what group members were working on.

Resources:

EduCause - 7 Things you should know about Twitter

David Warlick's thoughts on Twitter in the Classroom. Raises someinteresting points to think about in terms of friends list as a popularity and safety/security issues. Responses to this blog are also worth a read as they relate to how some are using Twitter in schools.

Damien Bariexca blogged his ideas for how twitter might be used in English and Social Studies in his Promoting Twitteracy in the Classroom.

Clive Thompson on How Twitter Creates a Social Sixth Sense - Wired Magazine 06.26.07
This article does not reference Twitter in the educational realm but much of what Thompson writes relates. For instance, he writes Twitter "gives a group of people a sense of itself, making possible weird, fascinating feats of coordination." How great is this for group collaboration for individual with simiar projects and interests.

(An Area for thought: limitations and cons of use)

Different Tools to Integrate in Your Room

mrichme — Thu, 16 Aug 2007 14:11:00 CDT

Blogs
Wikis
Podcasts
Social Bookmarking
Photo Sharing
RSS
Twitter in the Classroom
Social Networking

Social Networking--Face what?

mattdkuykendall — Thu, 16 Aug 2007 08:21:41 CDT

FACEBOOK!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I'm sure you sometimes feel like this thing called facebook is being screamed at you....if your students aren't minimizing it as you walk by, they're talking about it. The thing is, facebook just isn't for students anymore....You could be taking advantage of it's amazing database search skills too!

Background
Facebook began as a social network site for college students only. It gained popularity amazingly fast and then opened up to high school students too (id #s were needed to gain an account). But now, due to it's popularity, facebook is open to everyone.

Why it's cool and why you should use it too!
Facebook is "six degrees of separation" manifest in a web site. Once you create an account, Facebook will search (if you want it to) your entire email address book for facebook members (you'll be amazed how many of your friends have an account). Once those members become your "friends" you can view your friends' friends to see if there is anyone you missed!

I have friends...so what?
Now that you have friends, you can keep up on what's going on in their lives. Facebook is the #1 photo sharing site on the web . But in addition to sharing photos, you can converse with your friends via private message, or by posting on their "wall". The "Wall" ispublic to your friends' friends...they see what you write, and you see what they write. Another benefit of facebook is the NETWORKS.

You can join different networks and view members of that same network. For example, I'm a member of the Plymouth State University Network. So, I can search within that network for a variety of variables such as education majors...facebook enables connections. If you're new in a city, you can join that city's network and search within it for people of the same job type, interests in literature, music, etc. The best part though.....
is that facebook is PRIVATE. Unlike myspace where you have to make an effort to make your page private, facebook is automatically private. Although you can see people's names and FACES, they have to "accept" you as a friend before you are allowed to view their wall and their photos.

Below is a short list of the few Social Networking sites that I use...however there is a link to a list of 50+ below. Some are open, some are private, some general, some specific. But first! Watch this funny intro video to facebook!

Facebook

MySpace

TravBuddy........

These are but three of a list of 50+ social network sites online. For a complete list click here

Photo Sharing

dgingrich — Fri, 10 Aug 2007 10:32:34 CDT

Taking and using pictures changed significantly with the advent of digital cameras. They make it much easier to use pictures on your computer since they are already in a digital format. Today we are even taking pictures with a phone. A couple years ago sharing pictures meant either emailing a favorite picture of Junior to the grandparents, or maybe uploading pictures to a personal website if you could figure out how to do that. Sharing pictures has now made that Web 2.0 leap. If emailing a picture to a friend is Web 1.0, what is photo sharing 2.0 style? Again this involves interconnectedness. With several sites available on the Internet you are able to share photos with just your class, or the whole world. Your class may share that unique photo of the chrysalis opening into a butterfly. If you add a tag/label you enable students in other parts of the world to find it view it. Your class could also do a search of photos related to the emergence of butterflies.

Another potential of these photo-sharing platforms is the ability to comment on photos. You or your class can post pictures and invite comments/discussion about them. You may limit who may participate for security reasons, or you may open it to anyone. An RSS feed may also be used to monitor for new comments.

Photo sharing services like Flickr and Zoomr will let you not only store your pictures but search for other pictures based on tags, just like you search for websites in del.icio.us. This is particuluarly helpful when looking for that one picture to make that PowerPoint more impressive and you don't want to go through volumes of Google Images.

Did you know that you could make still pictures interactive? Check this picture out...
Now check it out... when I put my mouse over the picture it shows where the hotspots are where people have annotated notes.

Click here for the original so you can see all of the things you can do with flickr. There are some great links to resources there as well as comments for you to read.

WHAT TO DO WITH PHOTO SHARING

Students could create a photo field trip of a selected state or country using online pictures.
The teacher could post a picture, on a blog for instance, and use it as a story starter.
Pose a weekly problem to solve with pictures added to the problem.
Students could create a collage with photos and comments.
Students can add photos to group presentations. (and the list goes on...)

AVAILABLE PHOTO SHARING SITES

Blogs

mrichme — Tue, 07 Aug 2007 20:27:54 CDT

Blog, Blog, Blog - Yes, it sounds like the adults talking on Peanuts cartoons, but it's more. A blog is short for weblog. A blog is basically a quick easy way to create a webpage. It is easier than using special software to create a web page and then trying to load it through your internet provider. Blogs are a great forum for writing journal entries which are then put in order by the date of the entry. Another advantage of blogs is that you can control who sees your blogs, and who may leave comments. You may also send invitations to people to view your blog and leave comments. There is even a simple tag/label available that will allow others to find your blog when doing a blog search.

GETTING STARTED

There are free sites for creating your blog (see the list below). Once you register you will be walked through some easy steps to creating your blog. There are different templates with different color schemes etc.
Postings:
Once your blog is established you then write and post entries. This is easy. Click “Create a New Post” and then type. There are **tools available including “Spell Check” and "Link". Once you highlight a word or some text, the link tool will create a link after you type in the URL. Generally the post is auto-saved. Once you are finished you simply click the “Post” button. Of course you may also go back and edit your posts.

BLOGS AND EDUCATION

So how can you use blogs in education? Below is a short list to get you started. Please add to this list through your comments

Students can create a blog rather than a traditional report. This can include pictures, links etc. The possibility of receiving comments is powerful.
Journal entries can be created in a blog. These might include entries about a book, science experiment entries, etc.
A Blog can become an e-portfolio of students' work.
Students or the teacher can create an online book club.
Blogs could be an online literature circle.
Email penpals might create a blog together.
Blogs can link your class with a class anywhere in the world.
Teachers could post information about class such as events, assignments, calendars etc.
A great way to have students start is for them to read other Weblogs.
Blogs provide an authentic audience for student writing.

FREE SITES

SAMPLE BLOGS

Here are some sample Weblogs:

EduBlog Insights
The Write Weblog
Room 208

** Note to Apple Computer users: Many of the tools may not be present when using Safari. You might try a different browser such as Firefox .

Podcasts

mrichme — Tue, 07 Aug 2007 08:11:12 CDT

Podcasts are easy and awesome! A podcast is simply an audio file (mp3 format) that can be posted on the Internet. A podcast can be as simple as recording someone talking. To add interest to the recording you can include music, sound effects, and even other clips. You don't need a fancy microphone for the recording. To create (record) the podcast you can use different programs including GarageBand for Apple, and Audacity for Windows-based machines. IPods can even be outfitted with a microphone and can be used to create the podcast.
Once it is created you will want to post it somewhere so others can hear it. One method to do this is to place it right on your school's or district's web page. There are also free Internet sources where you can post your file. These include Podomatic and gcast. Once these are posted you can create links to them. A podcast is probably one of the most simple Web 2.0 tools to use.

HOW TO USE PODCASTS

Here are some possible uses of podcasts in education:

Create a classroom news show to let parents and others know what has been happening in the classroom.
Students can conduct interviews.
Students can record reviews on books, software, etc.
A group could report on events of the school.
While security issues might prevent the posting of a video news program, the audio could be posted as a podcast.
A poetry corner could be created.
Foreign language students could use podcasts for practice.
Students could create audio tours of classroom or school-wide work.
Students can write and create their own music for podcasts as well using GarageBand or a similar program.

SAMPLE PODCASTS

Here are some sample podcasts:

Education Podcast Network
Radio Willow Web
SpeedOfCreativity

Social Bookmarking

mrichme — Tue, 07 Aug 2007 08:07:40 CDT

Have you ever run into a great website at home to use in the classroom, but when you get to school you can't remember it and performing a Google search doesn't get you anywhere? Then you really want to consider social bookmarking!

What is social bookmarking?
Social bookmarking is a network of people who collect favorite or bookmarked websites, categorize them with keyword tags, and share them with others. Others can view these bookmarks or favorites and add them to their collection as well as keep tabs based on their feed. Social bookmarking becomes a dynamic process rather than static because these lists of sites are always changing due to the ease of the process.

What are "tags"?
Think of tags as keywords to the object (website, picture, music, etc.) you're viewing.

Here is a short video highlighting the social bookmarking service del.icio.us (the video comes from Jeff Utecht and Utechtips.com)

Sites like portaportal and ikeepbookmarks allow you to collect your bookmarks/favorites and store them on the web, but they don't let you interact with others. Social bookmarking sites let you make recommendations to other users and provides easy access to add them to your collection. Social bookmarking sites also let you know search for sites by tags which can provide users with quality control because the bookmarked sites also let you know how many people have it in their collection. You can also track users to see what resources their finding.

How can I use it in my classroom?
Teachers can utilize social bookmarking in a variety of ways.

Teachers can share their bookmarks with parents to help them help their children find quality resources
Teachers can set up a tagging system so students can have a bank of sites to help them find quality websites in researching topics and not loose time Googling their topic
Work within the network to find Internet resources to support classroom activities
Promote higher order thinking skills by allowing students to focus on how to retrieve resources rather than where to find it.

Where can I go to get started?

Social Bookmarking Example

Wikis

dgingrich — Tue, 07 Aug 2007 07:39:33 CDT

What is a wiki?
Wiki comes from the Hawaiian word "wiki wiki" which means quick. So a wiki page literally means a quick page on the Internet. Users can create web pages but allow others to collaborate as well as comment on the page. If you can type an email or a Microsoft Word document you can create a wiki. Wiki pages can incorporate text, audio, and video pieces embedded on the page. Users can look through the history of the page to see how it has developed and spammed or bogus versions can be reverted back to a good version. For those who need the audio and video to understand here is a great video from Common Craft.

How would I use this in my classroom?
Wikis can be very useful for the classroom teacher. Any time groups need to work together wikis allow the users to have a central spot to gather their work.

Here are some specific examples.

Students' notes are a great use for a wiki. Each student is responsible for making sure the content is accurate because everyone can benefit from the collective group not just an individual.
An encylopedia type collection of material. Students can collaborate and report out on their individual work and thus create a group work. Here is an example to check out with dinosaurs.
Creative writing projects - You could create a page with an introduction and then let your students go wild. Students can correct spelling and grammatical items as well as develop or revise other writing traits.
Teachers could use wikis for team meetings. Individual teachers can revise notes to accurrately reflect the meeting.
Wikis can become curriculum resources. Students can use the wiki to supplement classroom activities and as new sites are created teachers can add them to the wiki. Here is an example to check out with the Houghton Mifflin Reading series K-5.

Don't be limited to these ideas. Any time you ask students to work together and collaborate on a product a wiki is definitely an option to consider.

Where to Turn to Create Your Own Wikis

Wikispaces
Pbwiki
Wetpaint
Check with your technology coordinator or integrator as one can be installed on any webserver (no ads)

What is Web 2.0?

dgingrich — Mon, 06 Aug 2007 05:44:40 CDT

Now What?

mrichme — Wed, 01 Aug 2007 14:32:57 CDT

If you've read all or some of these pages you're head may be spinning. You want to get started but don't know where to start.

STOP

Don't try to tackle too much at first. Start with something small, get comfortable, and build from there. Chances are your students can be a great resource for technical support.

An example of how to get started,

If you have an interest in blogs decide if you want to read and/or write.
If you're interested in reading blogs set up a RSS aggregator, go perform a Google search on educational blogs, start reading different writers like David Warlick, Will Richardson, Wes Fryer, or even Jeff Utecht, and add the ones you like to your aggregator. Chances are your going to be lead to other blogs and writers to add to your list. Don't be afraid to add to the conversation and comment.
If you're interested in writing a blog find a service to get started with and set it up. Start writing. Please use tags and links in your postings. People track those things and may leave you a comment if they have something to add to your blog.

Don't fear failure. Failure in this case is not even trying!

RSS

mrichme — Wed, 01 Aug 2007 14:13:37 CDT

HAVE YOU SEEN ME BEFORE?

What is RSS?
RSS stands for Really Simple Syndication. RSS is a web feed (think of the ticker that runs on the bottom of TV screen) that people can subscribe to which allows people to get an update on the newest content on websites, blogs, podcasts, and even news sites. Sites with a RSS feed have the symbol in the address bar or somewhere on the page which you either click on or copy the address of to subscribe. Feeds are collected using an aggregator which goes out and compares the feeds to what you've already viewed and provides a listing of the new content since your last visit.

Once your subscribed to a feed the newest content comes to you. Your no longer looking for information at those sites saving your time!

Here is a video from Common Craft that explains RSS in Plain English

How can RSS be used in a classroom?

Keeping tabs on students' blogs or podcasts
Sources of information for current events
Tracking updates on collaboration projects using wikis
Tracking updates on services that use tags (pictures from flickr or sites within del.icio.us)

Not to mention RSS is a great method of gathering content in personal professional development.

RSS Feed Aggregators (Gatherers)

Web Based
Bloglines
Google Reader
Pageflakes
Netvibes

Application Based
Juice
NetNewsWire (Mac only)
SharpReader (Windows only)

Purpose for Integrating These Technologies in Your Classroom

mrichme — Wed, 01 Aug 2007 08:44:29 CDT

Why would you integrate Web 2.0 tools in your classroom?

Make units, lessons, or assessments that you do in class better
Increase student engagement
Model responsible and ethical behaviors using technology
Increase the resources available to you
One more tool to add to the toolbox

Should I completely redo everything I do to add Web 2.0 in my classroom?
NO, don't view technology or Web 2.0 as a replacement for what you do. The technology fit should make sense. Students can see when something is forced and unnatural. Start with something small with a lesson or unit that you know can be made better.