Software+Integration

=Technology Integration Ideas for the K-5 Classroom= ==Blogs, Wikis, Excel, Word, Power Point, Smart Board, iMovie, Photo Booth, iPhoto, GIMP, Social Bookmarking ==

Blogs
Blog is short for 'web log'. It works as an on-line journal. Blogs can have many classroom uses. Typically, a blog is started by one person (a teacher posts a question to students or writes a paragraph to read) and others can post comments about the question/information. You can add pictures, files, widgets and links too! Here are just a few classroom examples: o To post materials/resources for parents and students o Create a class website o Share student work/ group projects o Post writing prompts o Literature circle: student comments, observations, connections, predictions o There are unlimited possibilities!!!

Check out these examples of Blogs in the Ross District: [] [] []

//Add a Slide show to your Blog (eTech Presentation 2010)//
You can add a picture slide show and/or a Power Point presentation to your blog or wiki. Check out the slide show below for an example of a Power Point file and directions on using Picasa to add a picture slide show: media type="file" key="eTech 10.ppt.mov" width="300" height="300"

**Wikis**
The site you are on right now is actually a wiki! A wiki is a website that you can create or edit without any special technical knowledge, tools or software. Editing a wiki is very much like editing a Word document. The end result is a web page that you can share with other staff, students and/or parents. You can set the privacy settings on wikis to let others change and edit content (great for group projects and working with other staff) or lock it down so only the creator can change information. This use would be more like a 'traditional' website that others can visit and view.

Wikis are great for sharing/organizing information, web quests, links to other sites, etc. You can add pages, links, pictures, widgets, content and more! Here are a few ides of how to use wikis from: [] > An elementary class “encyclopedia” on a special topic, such as explorers or state history – to be continued and added to each year! > A wiki “fan club” for you favorite author(s).
 * An annotated virtual library: listings and commentary on independent reading students have done throughout the year
 * collaborative book reviews or author studies
 * A virtual tour of your school as you study “our community” in elementary grades
 * A travelogue from a field trip or NON- field trip that the class would have liked to take as A culmination of a unit of study: Our (non) trip to the Capital and what we (wish) we saw.
 * Detailed and illustrated descriptions of scientific or governmental processes: how a bill becomes a law, how mountains form, etc.
 * Family Twaditionwiki- elementary students share their family’s ways of preparing Thanksgiving dinner or celebrating birthdays (anonymously, of course) and compare them to practices in other cultures they read and learn about.
 * A //Where is Wanda// wiki: a wiki version of the ever-favorite Flat Stanley project. Have each Wanda host post on the wiki, including the picture they take with Wanda during her visit. Even better: keep an ongoing Google Earth placemarker file to add geographic visuals to Wanda’s wonderful wanderings as a link in the wiki. WOW! Where in the world IS Wiki Wanda?

Check out the example of a classroom Wiki in the Ross District: http://mrskingsley-3rdgrade.wikispaces.com/

**Excel **

 * Gather/Organize Data (Data Tables)
 * Charts and Graphs (Pie Charts, Line Graphs or Bar Graphs-watch charts automatically update with new data)
 * Order of Operations (Formulas)
 * Pie Charts to study percentages (can add % to chart segments-visually represent percents)
 * Mean, Median, Mode (Formulas/Functions)
 * Create a database

**Word **

 * Proofreading and Correcting
 * Create Timelines (Drawing Toolbar)
 * Type research papers, poetry, journal entries, stories

**Power Point **

 * Create individual or group presentations
 * Comic Strips (Creative Writing)

Math and Science:

 * Measurement (Ruler, Thermometer)
 * Create movable objects to demonstrate fractions, addition and subtraction
 * Congruent shapes-flip and rotate objects
 * Use a protractor to measure and draw angles
 * Making change with coins and bills
 * Layers of the Earth
 * Seasons
 * Time and Shadows
 * Weather
 * Use Google Earth to study ice caps, geography, topography, stars, planets, galaxies
 * Symbols

Language Arts and Social Studies

 * Venn Diagrams
 * Idea Webs-move individual pieces to change order
 * Rearrange words, sentences and paragraphs
 * Reading/Writing Numbers and letters (print and cursive)
 * Maps-Countries/Continents/Empires
 * Calendar- Days, Weeks, Months and Years
 * Symbols

iMovie [[image:Picture_4.png width="46" height="44"]]
Use iMovie to edit, create and record digital movies or sideshows. //Project idea//: Use iMovie to have students record video of themselves reading. (Thank you for the idea Dave Williams!) Have students write stories using Word or paper and pencil continuously throughout the year. Set aside lab or classroom computer time periodically (about once every 2 months) to have students record themselves reading their stories and showing pictures using iMovie and the 'Camera Inport Window' function. Once all recordings have been made, create and burn a CD for each student to take home. They will be able to see the improvement made throughout the year! This can be adapted for multiple grade levels by increasing or decreasing the amount of responsibility for the teacher and students.

Photo Booth [[image:Picture_3.png width="49" height="47"]]
Use Photo Booth to have students take digital pictures of themselves. Add features from the 'Effects' options to create a theme. Students can import pictures into iPhoto and edit/print as needed. This can be a great addition to autobiographies, art projects and many more classroom lessons!

iPhoto [[image:Picture_2.png width="50" height="50"]]
Use iPhoto to organize, edit and print pictures from a digital camera or photo booth.

GIMP Image Manipulation Software
Use Gimp software to take photo editing to the next level. It is free software that will let creativity prevail! This software allows you to perform photo retouching, image authoring and image composition. Let me know if you need handouts! You can download the entire user manual from the site, however I have handouts that may be easier to follow when you are just getting started or creating student handouts. [|GIMP - The GNU Image Manipulation Program]

Social Bookmarking
Social bookmarking is a new way to organize your 'favorites' (websites saved in your favorites or bookmarks sections in your computer/internet browser) and share them with others. Think of the classroom potential; save your collection of research sites online instead of on individual computers. Now you can create a list of bookmarks one time and let students access them from the classroom computers, laptop cart, computer lab or even from home! You can also share them with other teachers or work together easily to create a list of appropriate websites for student projects and teacher resources. Check out the video below from Teacher Tube (video created by Common Craft) for more information. The video talks about using 'del.icio.us' for the social bookmarking software. There are many more to chose from, however we can access Delicious from Ross buildings. These are web-based free resources! media type="custom" key="2886315"

Get started now!
[| Delicious]