definition – iLearn Technology

Inside Story Flashcards: The world’s most interesting way to learn words

September 22, 2011Kelly Tenkely1 Comment5272 views

What it is: First of all, how about that for a tagline? “The world’s most interesting way to learn words” is a lofty goal for anyone to reach, but I must say, Inside Story Flashcards is doing a bang up job of it! What makes these vocabulary flashcards so great is the accompanying pictures. They are so appropriate for the words they are describing and offer a great visual to associate with the word. In addition to the well matched picture, students can click on a speaker icon for audio of the word. Students can choose to show or hide the definition. Students can choose words at four different levels: Basic (includes words like seven, comb, typewriter); Easy (includes words like attire, inclined, endorsement); Medium (includes words like prodigy, monochrome, dank) and Hard (includes words like crepuscular, bedizened, atavistic).

The online flashcards are fantastic but there are also free printable flashcards for offline use!

How to integrate Inside Story Flashcards into the classroom: Inside Story Flashcards are a superb addition to any classroom. They are just the ticket for visual learners…petrified will forever more be associated with the kitten picture above in my mind! These flashcards are a fun way to practice vocabulary and learn a new word.

Use the site with the whole class using a projector-connected computer or an interactive whiteboard. Split students into teams to see which team can come up with the most creative sentence using the new vocabulary word. The online flashcards also make a great creative writing prompt. Students can use the newly learned vocabulary in connection with the picture displayed.

Students can practice their vocabulary skills on classroom computers using the “hide definition” feature. Students can quiz themselves and then show the definition to find out if they are correct.

The print flashcards can be used in the low tech or no tech classroom. Print out flashcards to keep in a writing inspiration station. Students can use them to learn new vocabulary or to inspire writing.

Start your day with a new word. This can be the “word of the day”, challenge students to use the word of the day in conversation at some point during the day.

Do you have students who are gearing up for the SATs? Send this link home for some fun practice/learning time.

Tips: At Inside Story Flashcards, you can also purchase sets of flashcards with a theme. I’m liking the cat and dog flashcards. Can Haz vocabulary.

**For those who are wondering, I did write this post on my iPad. It was not wicked hard…just different.

Please leave a comment and share how you are using Inside Story Flashcards in your classroom!

Word Girl Definition Competition: Live vocabulary game show!

March 17, 2011March 17, 2011Kelly Tenkely4 Comments4135 views

What it is: Mark your calendars now for the Word Girl Definition Competition on April 27, 2011; this is a live vocabulary event being hosted by Scholastic and is free to participate in! You must register by April 22 to recieve your webcast event kit, participate in the definition competition, and be entered for a chance to win books and Word Girl prizes. The Word Girl Definition Competition is a fun way to engage students with vocabulary words in a fun, interactive context. The competition includes a 30 minute live webcast where students will enrich their vocabulary and have fun. This will also be the kick off to the Scholastic summer challenge to get students excited about books and reading throughout the summer.

The competition is made up of 3 rounds plus a bonus round. The competition will be in game-show format, students will be challenged to work those vocabulary skills as they answer questions pertaining to word usage, definitions, using words in different contexts, and reading comprehension. Your students will play along with the game in real time by submitting answers online during the webcast and may be called out during the event. This event will help your students understand the meaning of words, use context clues for correct word usage, leverage visuals to define words, draw on existing vocabulary knowledge, and present vocabulary words in varied and interesting ways. Fun right?!

How to integrate Word Girl Definition Competition into the classroom: This one is a no brainer, if you teach elementary students this is an event that your class should participate in. Word Girl making vocabulary fun as it is, combine that with a fun LIVE game show format and you have got yourself a winner. This would be a great event to involve your students in and will have them flexing those vocabulary muscles. I love that this competition isn’t just focused on definitions but on helping students learn strategies for decoding words using visualization strategies and context clues…those are skills that can be easily transferred! Sign up your students today to participate in this fun, friendly competition!

Prior to the competition, build up some excitement and squeeze in some extra vocabulary practice by giving your students the opportunity to play on the Word Girl website. This could be done as a center in the classroom or in a one to one environment.

Tips: If you aren’t familiar with the Word Girl website, be sure to check it out here.

Please leave a comment and share how you are using Word Girl in your classroom!

Bomomo

April 20, 2010April 20, 2010Kelly Tenkely1 Comment3943 views

What it is: Sometimes students just need a place to get out some creative energy. Bomomo is the perfect place to send them. Bomomo lets creativity run wild with a new kinds of painting tools. Students imaginations will run with the possibilities that this site offers. There just isn’t any other painting program like it. Try it out for the full effect. Student masterpieces can be saved to the desktop offline, these would make great customized desktop images.

How to integrate Bomomo into the classroom: Allow students to create their own desktop images for classroom computers using Bomomo. Teach your students about abstract artists and art, then let them create their own with Bomomo. Ask older students to describe (in writing) what each tool does, how it works, what happens when they click or move their mouse. Have students compare their finished descriptions finding common language and differences. Students can come up with common definitions for each tool. This is a great exercise in descriptive writing, explanatory writing, and observation. My students asked if they could use Bomomo to create CD covers for the music that they created in GarageBand, of course I said yes! This is a fun site to explore as a class using an interactive whiteboard or projector.

This site is so calming and captivating, I wonder if it would be a good one for students to play with before taking tests?

Tips: There are two ways to save student creations: normal and high quality. Normal saves as a jpg and high quality saves as a png image.

Please leave a comment and share how you are using Bomomo in your classroom.