The title of each tool is a link that will take you to that tool's website to learn more or sign up.
Please note that while the descriptions of the tools may be similar, the example links
will take you to new examples of the tool being used as a student product.
Please note that while the descriptions of the tools may be similar, the example links
will take you to new examples of the tool being used as a student product.
Weebly
Instead of a traditional (boring) presentation, why not have your students make a fantastic looking website? Weebly is a FREE and user-friendly... don't you think mine looks great?! I used Weebly. Your students can include text, images, image galleries, slide shows, videos, links to other pages or outside websites, maps, contact forms, documents, or anything with an embed code. To get started, they would choose from the many pre-made templates and start click and dragging. Check out Weebly websites made by my past Graduate students and websites made by my Sixth Graders.
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Piktochart
Piktochart is an tool for making infographics, flyers, and presentations. Students can demonstrate their knowledge by essentially creating a poster, in a visually-appealing way! Piktocharts can be shared with a link or downloaded as a image or .pdf file. Other poster making tools include: Canva, Google Drawings, and Adobe Spark.
Thinglink
Have students share multi-media resources with you by linking videos, audio (podcast, music, etc.), websites, articles, etc. They can create a ThingLink to show their understanding of a particular concept. The possibilities are endless... as long as it as a link! Click to see an example from a grad class student who was explaining an example of assistive technology. *NEW* Check out how Thinglink has updated to include 360-degree images and Virtual Reality (VR): See an example
Also, check out the "Book Bento" idea in Ms. H's Tweet. "Bento is a Japanese term of single serve take away meal that is served in a box – traditionally lacquered wood – with separate sections for different portions. Applying this structure to a literature response strategy results in book bento boxes. Here are some great examples to get you inspired (Bale, 2018)." Thinglink can help take the Book Bentos to another level by layering information and resources onto each object in the picture. Aside from text and pictures, anything with a URL can be linked so with the help of Google Drive and other cloud based applications, the sky is the limit in terms of what each "pin" can contain! |
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smore
Have students create a virtual flyer to present information about a topic you are learning. They can add pictures, links, videos, audio files, and more! Click to see an example from a grad class student who was explaining the Copyright laws in Eduction.
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Powtoons
Instead of having students create a boring presentation, tell them to make an animated video instead! If they know how to use Microsoft PowerPoint, they can do this too- even my sixth graders loved it. Powtoons allows students to create slides of information but add animations and props to spice it up. Top it off with some music and/or voice narrations, sit back, and enjoy! Click to see an example from a grad class student who had to make a Public Service Announcement for elementary-age children about their school's Acceptable Use of Policy for technology.
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MindMeister
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MindMeister is an online mind mapping tool that lets you capture, develop and share ideas visually. MindMeister is free and completely web-based, which means there's no download and no updating! MindMeister lets you share your mind maps with as many friends or colleagues as you want and collaborate with them in real-time. Whether you're in a face-to-face meeting or thousands of miles apart, everyone can see changes made in the mind map immediately. Collaborators can quickly comment on topics, vote on ideas or discuss changes in our integrated chat. Similar to a Prezi, MindMeister's built-in presentation mode lets you turn mind maps into beautiful, dynamic slideshows within seconds. As soon as you're done you can export the slides as PNGs, embed the whole presentation on your website, or even broadcast it live to your collaborators online. Mind mapping is a powerful technique that helps you visualize your thoughts and communicate them to others. What’s more, mind mapping encourages a free flow of ideas, which makes it the ideal format for brainstorming and creative problem solving sessions.
All info above was taken from MindMeister. (2019). Online Mind Mapping. Retrieved from https://www.mindmeister.com/ |
Google Drive
Google Drive is a great alternative to Microsoft Office Suite because (1) it's FREE with a gmail account and (2) you can collaborate and share your work with others. That means that more than one person could be typing in a document AT THE SAME TIME. The document could be kept private, shared with anyone with the link, or shared out to the wide world web. *Note: Be sure students have either "shared" the assignment with you or selected the "anyone with link" setting so that you can view it for grading purposes.* Also, Google Drive has an app so students could work on their assignments anytime, anywhere, on any device. Click to check out a past presentation to learn more in depth about the Basics of Google Drive. Here is an example of a Google Presentation made by seventh graders in my STEM Club explaining their project.
Educreations
Why not have your students make "tutorial" videos to show their learning about a concept? Educreations is a "simple and intuitive" way to make videos. Unfortunately, Educreations is only available for the iPad for creating videos. Each video has a specific URL that students could submit for you to watch online (not viewable on mobile phones). Click here for both student and teacher example videos.
Alternative video making apps include: Explain Everything, Show Me, Screen Chomp, and screencast-o-matic
Alternative video making apps include: Explain Everything, Show Me, Screen Chomp, and screencast-o-matic
Last Updated: April 15, 2019