Social Network Literacy

I came across these videos by Howard Heingold and found them very insightful.  In them he details how the technological architecture of social networks are designed to allow for user innovation and creativity and how they have revolutionized education.  The world wide web outputs information to recipients.  Recipients next take this information and input it in their own personalized  and/collaborative way.  The experience of using networks places a  new value on information that would not have existed if the data was retrieved using another source.

This led me to think about the obvious connections between the Literacy and Technology class and ,also,  the Information Processing Model.  When educators use this type of lesson structure with their students they are allowing them to discover, interpret and reach personal conclusions in a way that never would have been possible without the use of social networks.  Social Networks truly have restructured the way we retrieve and interpret information.  

Check out Howard Heingold's videos:

Fireworks Worthy Resource: Google Documents

Get the skinny on google docs! (Newsletter)

I have come to know and love Google Documents over the past few semesters.  Above is a link to my newsletter detailing the reasons why Google Documents is so useful and a tutorial video explaining how to use it.  I created the newsletter on LetterPop, which is also a great resource. Check it out! : )

Below are the videos that are also available in the Newsletter:

So Why Don't You Slide?

Below is the slideshow I created using slide.com.  I have put in pictures of my blog, my personal wiki space, Team Techsavy's  business card and my why do you do what you do project.  Making the slideshow was very easy to do and allowed me to see the accomplishments so far this semester in one nice compact viewing.
Making a slideshow is a great way for students to show off their work. You may have your students create their own slideshow at the end of a big unit project.  It is a great way for students to be proud of their accomplishments and to share them with their classmates and parents.  Using a slideshow also will engage more visually inclined learners.  Best of all it quick, simple and free.

Voki for Education!

I have always been a big fan of Vokis, which are customizable speaking avatars.  The voki site has launched a new section, "voki for education." Educators can  view and share lesson plans that contain vokis on this site.  There is a teacher's corner in which educators share and discuss creative ways that they have incorporated vokis into their classrooms.  Voki are a great tool; they can be used for any subject, at any grade level and engage students in a creative way. For example, if you are teaching a lesson on American history, it would  be nice to incorporate a president voki.  It will grab students' attention and get a few laughs.  Last, but certainly not least, they are free!  Check out the Voki for Education Page and create your own.

As you can see they are a lot of fun to use ! : )