Mythology eBook project...

A few weeks ago I shared an ePub project that I was working on where students wrote their on children's books.  Today, I wanted to share the latest project I worked on with a few 7th grade ILA teachers.

For this project the students were learning about writing styles and had write their own Greek Mythology-like myth.

1. Students wrote, revised, and edited their myths in Google docs
2. Students drew pictures that depicted their myth
3. For homework students were required to scan their drawings to convert to .jpg format
1. The next steps used Pages on the Macbooks
4. Students created a title on their document & assigned the paragraph style as "Title"
5. Students inserted a picture to use as their book's cover
6. Students put their names below the pictures (leaving the paragraph style as "Title"
7. Students inserted a page break below the author name
8. Students inserted a Table of Contents
1. In the inspector the Table of Content Included only Title and Heading 1
9. Students inserted a page break below the TOC
10. Students created chapter 1 & assigned the paragraph style as "Heading 1"
11. Students pasted the body of the text from the their Google doc into the pages document below Chapter 1 & assigned the paragraph style as "Body"
12. Students inserted a page break below the body of chapter 1
1. Students repeated steps 10, 11, & 12 for each chapter
2. The students ran with this and started creating chapters for 'About the Author', dedication,  prologue & epilogue.  It was great to see them get so excited!
13. Students saved the pages document.
14. Then they exported the document as an ePub, and saved it to their desktops.
15. Then they emailed the epub file to themselves or whatever device they were using.
1. Many found errors by reading it on their own devices.  Then went back to the macbook and edited the document further to later export the epub again.
16. The ePub files were loaded onto one iPad and then shared over the projector.  Students who wanted were able to read their stories to their peers.
17. Students were encouraged to email the epub file to parents and grandparents as well.

Results:

Students: The students came alive when they got to see their book on the iPad.  They began asking questions about how they could write their own eBooks at home, if they could share their books, and if they could sell their books.  (although I will add that some students did not like having to draw their own pictures. They could've used sketchup or other software to create images for their books)

Parents:  The teachers involved with this project sent home emails to the parents explaining what the project was about.  After the books were completed many parents replied to the teachers explaining how much they and their students loved this activity.  They went on to tell about how they found typos or gramatical errors together while reading their eBooks at home.

Teachers: The teachers expressed how much they loved the engagement from the students.  They were blown away by the amount of parental involvement in the revising and editing process.  (I think this was facilitated by the ease of having the students email the file right to their parents in class.

We will definitely be doing more projects like this!

BYOD Jam Session...

Jam Session, Appy Hour, Show & Tell, Pair & Share, or whatever you want to call it...



Objective: Students share with you and their peers their favorite tech tools, website, apps, etc, that help them be more productive with your content. Students discuss how each tool helps them learn more and perform better in your class.

1. Invite your students to share their favorite tools, apps, or websites that help them in your class.
2. Give them a day or so to prepare.
3. Have the students, one at a time, show off their tool and explain how it has or is helping them with your class.
4. Keep a Google doc, today's meet, or some other way to document and share all of the tools shared in class. Make this available to students outside of class.
5. Allow students time to discuss the tools and download any apps that are shared in class.
6. Allow the activity enough freedom to explore different angles and perspectives of your course content, while steering toward tools that are productive, add value, and/or make your class fun.

This is a fantastic way to have your students find and discover great tools for learning about your classroom content.  If done properly, this activity will be engaging, fun, & informative.  You'll be surprised at some of the neat tools your students are using and how many of them you can probably use yourself.

We did this lesson with the 7th grade teachers and let them share any technology they used for work or play & it was a blast!  We'll probably do it again a few more times after the Christmas holiday. Our future jam sessions will will probably have specific themes creativity, communication, productivity, etc.

Children's eBooks with ePub

ePub is the standard file format for ebooks.  The software used to create ePub files is popping up everywhere and might soon be as simple as word processing.  (If you're a mac user it already is.)  ePub supports text, pictures and some ePub readers even support video (iBooks for example).
________________________________________________________________________________

OK, this is quickly becoming one of my favorite tech projects of the year.  Students write short stories and/or children's books.  We use simple software and epub templates to help the students paste their text into the document.  They find public domain photos to use as illustrations (could also team up with the art classes). Then publish them as ePub files so that they can be read, shared, or even sold digitally. Once the books are published, they can be shared with the elementary age classes in your district, parents, grandparents, etc.  Providing your students with an instant target audience that could be reading the stories hours or even minutes later.

Why have your students create ePub files?

1. Being able to produce and distribute your own book is a paradigm shift as influential as the invention of the printing press.
2. Teach students they don't need a publisher to become a published author.
3. Teach the importance of authors and writing (producing vs. consuming).
4. Give students a large audience for their work.  The pressure of knowing the audience is more than just their teacher should be enough to dramatically improve their work.
5. Teach students that digital text is and should be much more than texting.

Resources for creating ePub files:

• Create ePub files using Pages for Mac.
• How to Make an ePub file...
• Convert Word Documents to ePub
• Convert pdf to ePub

*Sidebar: One of our students wrote her book in Spanish.  It was an ABC book.  I happen to have a 1st grader learning to read in the bilingual program at school.  So I took the book home to her and her read it that evening.  She loved it and I loved being able to show her a book that another student just a few years older had created.

Future epub lessons I'm working on:

• Mythology projects - students are creating their own myths
• Student created campus cookbook, complete with pictures and videos taken in class and at home.

Classroom Management Models of BYOD

4 Models of BYOD

From Ed Tech Magazine by Jen LaMaster : You can find this full article here. 

Ready-To-Use & Personal Goals models:
If you are practicing BYOD at your school, it is important to be familiar with all 4 of the models above.  However, the most used models should be the Ready-To-Use model & the Personal Goals model.  These models encourage students to use their devices to perform many tasks related to your classroom and learning in general.  The more information, resources, and homework the students have on their device, the more likely they are to value and protect their right to use the device in the classroom.  Resulting in less classroom management and discipline problems.

Guided Model:
It has been my experience that many teachers only use the Guided Model.  The only time students are allowed to bring devices is for this project, or that activity.  Devices are otherwise banned in class on all other days.  This model is counterproductive.  1st - Students are not in the habit of bringing a device with them to class.  2nd - Students aren't conditioned to using their device in your class or for learning in general.  3rd - There are many missed opportunities to show students how the tools they already have can help them in their studies.  4th - This policy, like the old method of banning devices, encourages students to hide their devices from the teacher.  With the RTU and Personal Goals methods above, devices are left in the open.  It's easy for the instructor to see how they are being used.  Mischief is easier to spot.

Local Use Only Model:
This model is perfect for silent reading times.  Students are allowed to access books that are saved on their device.  However, more and more apps and other tasks on phones and devices require internet.  Also, with the exception of quiet reading time, it would be challenging for the teacher to monitor and enforce this model.


Want more?  I highly recommend "7 Myths About BYOD Debunked."

K12 Students Need Email...

Email, Who doesn't use email at work these days?  Very few jobs.  Problem is, who trains people to use email properly &  professionally?

Students in K12 schools need more access to email!  It has become one of the most used, if not the most used, form of communication in the workplace.  It is a skill that today's students will need to master if they are to be effective communicators in their future careers.  We've all been on the receiving end of emails messages that range from unprofessional to vague, to unclear, to perhaps even threatening.  Unless you're this person's supervisor, it's difficult to help them see the problems with their email etiquette.  What are you going to do, reply back to Bob and say "Hey Bob, your emails are so vague they leave the rest of us wondering if their are any lights on upstairs."

The student/teacher relationship, however, lends itself very well to training youth the proper skills, practices, and etiquette for using email efficiently and effectively.  If students were required to communicate with teachers via email they would be able to practice many of the skills below:

• How to create a distribution list & when to use it
• When/Why use "Reply All"
• When/Why use CC & BC
• When/How ineffective email can be and how to avoid miscommunication and other common problems
• Knowledge of attachments and file types
• How/When to sound formal or professional
• How to keep email organized
• How to to differentiate between texting and email
• Using email with mobile devices
• How to keep your email secure

It's not necessary for elementary school-aged kids to have email, but students should be fairly proficient and comfortable with the tool before they get into high school.  I tried to find estimates on how many schools/districts provide their students with email accounts, but was unable to find any reliable data.  However, it has been my experience that the majority of public education institutions still do not provide students with an official email address.

There are many ways for schools and districts to provide email to their students:

• Google Apps for EDU (free) 
• Microsoft Live @ EDU
• Gaggle.net - Has some great filters built-in that filter language, attachments, topics, etc.

I consider email to be one of the most basic 21st Century Skills that today's students need to know, and yet many of our students don't use it at school.  It's time to bring this skill deficiency to table and address it.  Let's use email with our students and train them in an environment where they can make mistakes with consequences that won't cost them their jobs, or more.

Radio Morning Show

Today I have a guest blog post by one of my favorite teachers, Mrs. Patterson.  Mrs. Patterson is the Theatre Arts teacher at one of our middle schools.  I hope that one day my own children get to be in her class or have the opportunity to know a teacher like her.  Her project below is a great idea and if I can convince the kids and parents, I'll post some samples of their finished projects in the next week or so.  Thank you Mrs. Patterson for sharing.

My beginning and intermediate theatre students were introduced to radio vocabulary and advertisement on Day 1 of this assignment. We listened to a few short morning show clips and after the notes were taken students were assigned a group (3-4 students). They then brainstormed ideas for call and frequency numbers (96.7 Kiss FM).  The students must also have radio “names” (Lunch Box, Susie Q,) and research current news stories to include in their show. Here is a quick summary of the lesson:

Objective: Students will create a 8- 10 minute morning show with current events, commercials, and sound effects through the use of SoundzaBound, IPOD’s, Sound Bible, Garage Band, and any device of their choice. They will present to the class and will follow the rubric handed out to them at the beginning of the project. Students must have 2 local news stories, 2 US news, 1 world, 2 sports, 2 entertainment, weather, 3 songs (no longer than 30 seconds) and 2 sound effects.

Procedure:

• Students will take notes over radio terminology.
• Pair students up and distribute radio worksheet and devices
• Students will brainstorm radio show name, call sign, character names, genera of music
• Students will research current events and write out 3 sentences on each story
• Students will write their commercial
• Students will put all information into a script and can type it up in Google Docs.
• Students will ding sound effects using Sound Bible, SoundzaBound, or IPOD free sound effects.
• Students will rehearse their show
• Performance day!! (Students will be in front of the classroom while the others turn around. Students will just hear the radio show. They will not see it as you can “see” on the radio.

Check out some of the best radio shows below:

This is one of my most favorite projects. Not only does it integrate current events and history into theatre, but it allows the students to use technology, be creative, write a script, and perform. Students are learning to work effectively in groups, monitor time, all while putting together a finished product. In the middle of their presentation I hand them a Breaking News article that they must add into the program. I love to listen to them when they are complete! My students have a lot of fun with this project!

Mrs. Patterson's website