Special Project

In educational technology we created a special project called an Exploding Box.  This box functions as a regular box. However, it also could creatively display different photos, etc. within the different layers of the box.  When you take the top off the box, the box opens up into what seems like three different boxes (images below).

   Some ways to use this box:

• Holiday presents
• Mystery Box (student brings an object for the day and the rest of the class guesses)
• Etc. 

  This project is really easy to make - 3 large pieces of cardstock, scissors, and double-sided tape are all you need..

Snagit - Classroom Organizer

As part of a multimedia project in Educational Technology, we were required to use the software Snagit to create a video about a specific classroom resource.  In my group, we chose to use Snagit to explain how to create your own classroom library using the Classroom Organizer website and app.  This is a simple and easy way to create and maintain a classroom library.  To learn how to use it, watch our video.

My Wild Self!

A few days ago, in Technology class, we learned how to create our "Wildselves". You create an avatar of yourself and then add some of your favorite animal parts. This website could be used as a resource for students during freetime, to practice their compter and internet skills or as a small science unit about adaptations. It could also be used in an art clasroom, where students create their "wildselves" on the website and then take that idea and turn it into an art project.   Overall, is it a fun and creative website.

http://www.buildyourwildself.com/

QR Code Lesson

• QR Codes are becoming more and more popular in today's technological world as well as in schools. 
• Teachers use them for different activities and lessons during classtime. 
• In my Educational Technology class we created our own lesson using QR Codes. 
• Mine is is to the left:
• I tied my audio book lesson to the QR code lesson.
• You could integrate this in the classroom by having a book on tape library that can travel anywhere you have an available scanner.

IPad Rules

IPads are becoming more and more prevalent in student's lives and in school classroom settings.  More classrooms every day have access to IPads so teachers are starting to need to create  guidelines for this technology.  I have created some guidelines of my own and designed a poster  using PowerPoint.

If you really like this poster click on it and it will take you to a printable version.

 

Polaroid Pictures

Real  Polaroid pictures are a rare sight today. However, the style adds a unique touch to an ordinary photo and is beginning to become popular again.  There are a lot of Polaroid templates to be found on the internet.  Here are some examples that I made using the templates from the website below.

http://www.ambrosiagirl.com/blog/tiny-polaroid-magnets/#

PowerPoint Form

Sometimes schools do not have Photoshop or allow you to download your own programs such as Gimp. However, this does not prevent you from making creative forms and posters in another program. This is an example of a form I created in PowerPoint. Plus if you really would like to use it you can click on the image and it will take you to a copy on google drive that you can print out.

Poster Project

The other day, in Educational Technology we were introduced to quite a few different poster making websites and asked us to explore them and then pick one to write a blog about.  I chose to use Poster My Wall.  It is a great website because it allows you to upload photos from Facebook or off your computer to use in your poster as well upload your poster to Facebook when you are done.      This website  has an intuitive interface with step by step directions on how to make a poster from scratch.  Also, it has a few different templates you can use to make a poster if you need to jump start your creative side.

I chose a collage format poster using photos from my weekly picture project. However, this type of poster can be used for different teacher items as well.  For example, this type of poster could be used with first day photos to make a classroom roster, to document a project, or even a field trip. I would recommend this program for teachers and people in general because of its easy to use interface and directions. Having the ability to connect to Facebook is also a plus.

www.postermywall.com

Mp3 Audio Book

In Educational Technology, we downloaded a great program called Audacity (http://audacity.sourceforge.net/).This program takes recordings and allows them to be played back.  In order to burn it onto a CD you just download a lame file (http://lame1.buanzo.com/#lameswindl) which will allow you convert the file to an mp3.

I took this idea one step further and placed my audio book on Youtube (www.youtube.com). Click on the picture to order this book from Amazon or click on the Youtube video to hear my audio book.

Germ Cover Image

We are entering the Flu season and as teachers/future teachers, we need to keep ourselves healthy in order to teach our students at our best.  One way to do this is to have hand sanitizer available to you on the go.  This comes in handy for both you and for the students around you.  However, sometimes the covers of hand sanitizer bottles are boring so We learned to create covers for our bottles. Here is my example: 

    
Once this was printed, I used Mod-Podge to attach this image onto my pen-shaped hand sanitizer container for easy and germ free travel. I plan to use this often to limit my colds this season.

Instagram Images

Instagram is a fun app that uses different filters on any picture you take. However, not everyone has a phone that supports this app. Here is how to make your own Instagram photostrips.
Instructions:
1.  Open Photoshop or Gimp
2.  Create a blank 4x6 document
3.  Decide which pictures to use (10 fit on the page)
4.  Place them in two lines vertically
5.  Place fun boarders around them or go old style photo booth as in my example
6.  Print them out
7.  Cut them out and you have instagram photostrips.

Blurring Out Faces

Here is an example of blurring out faces using Gaussian  blurring. I chose to use a different percentage of blur on each face to show how protective blurring can get. Blurring out faces is a very simple process and can keep you out of trouble as an educator.

Flickr

I have created an account with Flickr. I am able to upload my pictures to it and access them from where ever I am. I  can also publish them on my blog or for that matter anywhere on the internet. To look at my photo stream go to:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/jamesjhoff/

Cupcake

This is my cupcake project from Educational Technology. We learned to create a .png file during this project. Also, we learned about selecting pieces, adding backgrounds, and layering. It was a simple activity in Photoshop that provided education on many tools within the program.

Magazine Cover

In my Educational Technology class, we were assigned a final Photoshop project where we were to create a magazine cover using the elements of Photoshop we had learned how to use over the previous lessons.  The type of magazine we chose to create was left up to us and we had a large amount creative license.  I chose to integrate part of our weekly picture project (Favorite Foods) and created the image to the right. I had a lot of fun with this assignment.

iSpy Picture

Kids love I Spy Books! However they can be expensive. Think about how much fun would learners would  have finding objects around the classroom to create their very own I Spy book? It is actually very inexpensive as well. All you  have to do is go to Walmart or Target and buy a simple $3 photo book, print each student's picture and slip them into the book. This could be incorporated into the curriculum when students are learning different aspects of grammar, writing, or just for fun.

 My example: I spy a fishy face, two cents, and a ghost.

Photoshop Poster

Photoshop is a great way for teachers to create their own posters. Can't think of a good saying? Simply google poster ideas or quotes pick your favorite and recreate. Photoshop has all the tools to customize your very own posters.

If you want a great set of templates that work with Photoshop, and a place that will print and ship your poster for a very low price check out :

http://www.vistaprint.com

Photo Cubes

Photo cubes  are an awesome way to teach in your classroom. They have many uses. Some of the many are using the cube for a all about me, you could create site word dice, or even number dice for board games or counting.  Another great possibility is a 3d name tag. You can take pictures of your students and a picture of their favorite object, and their name add it to the template and print.

For the template I used to create this cube go to:
http://styleburb.blogspot.com/2011/04/fun-family-photo-cubes.html

Wordle

Creating a wordle is a great way to communicate ideas in a different and more exciting way. Also, they could be used as part of an "All About Me" project. Here are a few examples of  wordles (click on the pictures to see a larger version), along with a link to create your own.

http://www.wordle.net/