Category: Websites

Photo Writing Prompt Tumblr from @JohnTSpencer

Kelly Tenkely1 Comment on Photo Writing Prompt Tumblr from @JohnTSpencer4082 views
What it is: @johntspencer is one of my very favorite bloggers.  He makes me think, laugh, challenges me and reminds me that there is always something to push forward for in education.  If I’m honest, sometimes he even makes me crazy…usually because he is pushing my thinking into areas I’m not ready to consider yet.  How dare he call “me” out?!  To be fair, he isn’t calling me out, usually he is calling himself out and I feel the residual conviction.   John writes all over the place.  The first time I encountered his genius was a chance reading of his blog Adventures in Pencil Integration.  Brilliant.  I started following it pretty early on in it’s existence and soon found that he writes ALL over the place.  He has written several books including Drawn into Danger, Pencil Me In, Teaching Unmasked, Sages and Lunatics, and a Sustainable Start.  If you haven’t read these, you should.  John is open and honest and has a great sense of humor.  His Education Rethink blog leads you to all of his resources, blogs, books, videos and podcasts.
John has also created a resource for his students that the rest of us can use.  How nice of him!  His Photo Writing Prompt Tumblr is chalk full of images with captions designed to make students think deeply.  Browse through the collection and soon you will understand how students can’t help but pour forth their ideas in writing.  We do something similar at Anastasis but hadn’t been collecting the images on anything but our own blogs.  These prompts are a great addition to what we are doing!  Some of them are challenging, some are thoughtful, some are humorous.  Sometimes we get a really special treat and John includes his own sketches.

How to integrate Photo Writing Prompt Tumblr into the classroom:  This one is best for intermediate, jr. high and high school students.  The topics are probably a little too complex for younger students to write about (although some of them would be appropriate and some kids are really brilliant!).  Spending time writing creatively is one of the best ways to improve as a writer, to challenge and support deep thinking, and to express themselves.  I learn SO much about students through their writing.  Whether it be a blog post, an imaginative story or a letter…writing exposes them in new ways.
Use John’s Photo Writing Prompt Tumblr with your students, these can be projected for students to see while they write.  John updates the Tumblr often so you won’t be lacking for new material for your students to interact with!  Students can write in a traditional writing journal, in the form of a blog post where they link to the original post, or on a class blog together as a group writing project.
Tips:  Teach younger students? Take a cue from John and start your own writing prompt Tumbr for your students!
I’ve written about another Photo Prompt Tumblr blog that you can find here.  Incidentally, I learned about that blog from @johntspencer. That guy is full of ideas!

Please leave a comment and share how you are using Photo Writing Prompt Tumbr in  your classroom!

Gamestar Mechanic: Teaching game design in the classroom

Kelly Tenkely4 Comments on Gamestar Mechanic: Teaching game design in the classroom7205 views
What it is: I just love when I get lost in a bunny trail of links…you know the kind, you go hunting for something specific and click on something that looks interesting which leads you to a browser of 25 tabs open.  I had one of these serendipitous link moments today that lead me to Gamestar Mechanic.  Gamestar Mechanic is both a game and an online community that teaches kids how to design their own digital games.  In designing games, students learn systems thinking, creative problem solving, art and aesthetics, writing and storytelling, and creates a motivation for further STEM exploration.  The free version of Gamestar Mechanic is available with unlimited use for teachers who want to use it with their students.  This account option comes with 1 teacher login and 40 student logins.  A premium account offers some additional classroom goodies including: class management, the ability for students to incorporate their own custom artwork, live professional training webinars, tools for tracking student activity and assessing progress, the option of having a “walled” school community, and more.
As a teacher you will find sample lessons for using Gamestar Mechanic, an introductory step-by-step guide, and a full learning guide.  Teachers can even play a short quest to learn more about how to use Gamestar Mechanic in the classroom to teach core subjects.

How to integrate Gamestar Mechanic into the classroom:  There is so much to learn from digital games.  As a player, students learn to think strategically, persist through failure and experience epic wins that can translate to what they do and are willing to try out in real life.  As a designer students learn systems thinking, creative problem solving, digital art and aesthetics, and storytelling and writing.  Students love being able to bring their creations and ideas to life in the form of a game.  Gamestar Mechanic could be the key to unlocking the storytelling genius in your reluctant writers.  It has been my experience that a student faced with a blank paper and a writing assignment can be daunting.  Introduce the idea of designing their own game and suddenly a storyline pours forth.  It is pretty neat to watch!
Gamestar Mechanic makes it easy for all teachers to incorporate game design into the classroom and weave it into the core subjects being taught.  You don’t have to be a tech-superstar, just create an account, read through the getting started guide and enlist the help of a student who’s passion is game design.  This type of designing and thinking is wonderful because it lays the ground work for so much other STEM thinking.  It nicely blends disciplines and helps students recognize the overlap in the learning that they do.
Students can each create a game of their own in a lab setting where every student has a computer.  If you are limited on your computer options for students, create a game as a class using an interactive whiteboard or projector-connected computer.  Students can create games that incorporate other learning or research they are doing to help teach future classes or younger students.  At Anastasis, we have Crave Classes.  These are classes that the student gets to choose based on personal passions.  In the one or two computer classroom, give your students time for a Crave class where they work on Gamestar Mechanic.  Other students can follow their areas of passion…almost in a center type of a set up.
Tips:  There are a variety of pricing and package options for classrooms.  If your students are really enjoying the game design process, it might be worth taking a look at the premium options available.

Please leave a comment and share how you are using Gamestar Mechanic in  your classroom!

festisite text layout: Valentine’s word art

Kelly Tenkely2 Comments on festisite text layout: Valentine’s word art5454 views
What it is: Tomorrow is Valentine’s day! While I’m not a big celebrator of this holiday at home, I do enjoy making a big deal of it at school.  It is a fun day to build community and culture within a school!  Our Valentine’s day plans include jump rope and hoops for heart, the Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore, a read-in, book exchange and some fun games/art projects!  I am excited!  One of the sites I am looking forward to introducing tomorrow is festisite Text Layout. The site is easy to use and yields some impressive results.  Students type a bit of text into the text box.  Then they click “Layout text” and get their text written as a shape poem inside a heart.  The image is delivered as a PDF which makes it easy for students to print and save their creations.  Cute and easy!

How to integrate festisite text layout into the classroom: festisite text layout is a neat way for students to play with text.  Students can use festisite text layout to write a shape poem about Valentine’s day or a non-fiction poem about the heart.  Use the site to create fun Valentine wishes for friends.
Turn the heart text layouts into a game by writing heart-related vocabulary definitions.  Students can cut out the heart shape and write the vocabulary word on the back.  Students can see how fast their team can get through the deck of cards they have created.
We will be using the heart layout to write a reflection about what we “love” about a book we are reading during our read-in tomorrow.  This shape poem can be taped to the inside cover of the book so that when we do our book exchange, it has a personalized message about the book from the giver.
Tips:  festisite has other fun text layouts to try including money, card games, logos, iPhones, poems, and text layouts.  You can even create spirals, mazes, banners and rebus puzzles out of your text.  Way cool!

Please leave a comment and share how you are using festisite text layout  in  your classroom!

Money Island: a financial literacy virtual world

Kelly Tenkely7 Comments on Money Island: a financial literacy virtual world6579 views
What it is: Money Island is a neat site I found today while searching for some fun tie ins for our economic inquiry block at Anastasis.  This enchanting virtual world teaches students about money and how the economy works while they go on quests to destinations like the Eiffel Tower and Atlantis.  Students learn and practice the real-life principles of financial responsibility.  Students build knowledge and skills in three major areas including: saving and spending, earning and investing, and using credit wisely.  In addition to these major areas, students learn how to spend, grow and give money; the difference between wants, needs and taxes; different types of income; gain an understanding of interest; how to use credit wisely; and how to build wealth.
The site includes detailed lesson plans and activity suggestions for the classroom, as well as a specialized area within money island where teachers and parents can see what students are learning and track progress.
Money Island was created in partnership with the Young Americans Bank.  This bank was designed specifically for children under the age of 21!  Our students will be taking a field trip to the Young Americans Bank in Denver to continue their learning during this block.  If you are in the Denver area, it is a great field trip!
How to integrate Money Island into the classroom: Kids are not exposed to enough opportunities to learn and practice financial literacy.  Case in point: the national debt crisis, housing loan disaster, and credit card stats. It baffles me that we don’t spend more time in the classroom helping kids learn about money and finances!  Every teacher should take this on in some capacity, we can’t assume that someone else will teach it.  Kids need to learn about how the economy works prior to being neck deep in financial decisions on a daily basis.  Money Island is a fun introduction to all of this!
Students begin their journey in Money Island with a mission to help character Stone Broke.  Students choose a virtual side-kick who will guide them through Money Island and help them make important decisions.  Students are directed through a series of quests to help Stone Broke while learning about money and how to make sound financial decisions.
Money Island is a virtual world so it takes a bit of time to get all the way through it.  When students login, they are given a special key so they can pick up right where they left off in the game.  This is a great site for a one to one classroom environment or computer lab setting where each student has their own computer.  The site could also be used as a center activity on classroom computers with students rotating through the center throughout the week.  Because students can save their progress, they can play from both school and from home.
Money Island makes a fantastic tie-in to a money or economics unit for kids.
***Hint: Click “Join” to join.  For some reason the “Play” button is a little bit temperamental.  It worked for me the first time I played with it but not the second…not sure what that is all about!
Tips:   There is a new game featured on Money Island…Episode 2 helps students learn how to “win” at the credit game.  There are also fun mini games and comics on the site for kids to interact with and explore!

Please leave a comment and share how you are using Money Island in  your classroom!

Google Doodle, Science Fair, Booklet

Kelly TenkelyLeave a Comment on Google Doodle, Science Fair, Booklet3556 views
What it is:  Google has all kinds of great resources that many of us use daily in our schools.  Every year I look forward to the launch of Google Doodle and wait with anticipation to see what kids from around the US have come up with.  This year, I am in a place where we can even try our hands at the Google Science Fair.  Very exciting stuff!
Doodle for Google is now open for 2012 submissions!  K-12 students can express themselves through the theme “If I could travel in time, I’d visit…” as creatively as possible using Google’s logo as their canvas.  The winner gets their image displayed on the Google homepage for a day, $30,000 in college scholarships and a $50,000 technology grant for their school.  The winning doodle will also be featured on a special edition Crayola box.  Submissions have to be postmarked by March 20th.
The Google Science Fair is open to students age 13-18.  Students from around the world compete for over $100,000 in scholarship funds, an expedition to the Galapagos, an experience at CERN, Google and LEGO and an award from Scientific American.  Nothing to scoff at!
Google also has a new booklet available called “Google in Education: a New and Open World for Learning“.  This is a great resource to see how others are using Google tools in education.
How to integrate Google Doodle and Science Fair into the classroom: Google for Doodle and Google Science Fair are such fun competitions for students to get involved in.  Both let students think and express themselves creatively.  If you don’t have time to integrate these contests into your regular school day, consider holding an after school club for a few weeks so that students have a place to gather and participate.
I really love looking through the Google Doodles every year.  I was thinking that it would be fun to have the students create a doodle with our school name based on our school theme for the year.  Yearbook cover?  Now that could be fun!
Tips:   Share the new Google edu booklet with your colleagues, don’t hog all of those good ideas to yourselves!

Please leave a comment and share how you are using Google Doodle and Science Fair in  your classroom!

America’s biggest story time with Tim Tebow!

Kelly Tenkely1 Comment on America’s biggest story time with Tim Tebow!4173 views
What it is:   Book-it and Suessville have teamed up to do a live read-aloud story time with Tim Tebow.  On February 15, 2012, Tim Tebow will be live in a webcast reading Dr. Seuss classic, Green Eggs and Ham.  This is especially exciting for our Colorado kids who are huge Tebow fans-HUGE.  There are lots of fun printables to pump your students up for the big-day including some tail gate party fun.  There are coloring pages, bookmarks, graphing activities, green activities, games and more.
How to integrate America’s Biggest Story Time into the classroom: Set up a reminder for this one, it is sure to be a good time.   You just can’t beat a good story…Green Egg and Ham is a classic!  Hold a reading party in your classroom, using this event to kick it off.  Start by holding a tail gate party complete with fun snacks, a book exchange, etc.  Watch Tim Tebow read Green Egg and Ham live in the webcast on an interactive whiteboard or on a projector-connected computer.  Set up tents, pillows and blankets around the room where students can choose a cozy spot for a day of reading.  This is a fun way to celebrate the joy of reading.
Here are some more ideas I have been collecting on Pinterest for your read-in book party:
Book cakeBook party inviteBubble Gum TimerCaterpillar kabobs
Tips:   Sign up for an email reminder for this event on the Book It website!  I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: you should be on Pinterest. 

Please leave a comment and share how you are using America’s Biggest Story Time with Tim Tebow in  your classroom!