Can You Tell Me The Color of Joy?

The Color Of is a neat little site I stumbled upon a while ago.  All you do is put in a search term, and it generates the color of that term from tagged images on Flickr. The result is an interesting, and not always expected palette of color.  It's just in beta form right now, but I could see this being an interesting art activity...maybe do a search, then print out the resulting color and make a picture from just those scraps of paper.  Maybe even a writing activity, talking about how the color was achieved or how each part of the color represents a different part of the original search term.  Have fun with it!

Here are some of the searches I did:

and of course....

Timetoast

Timelines seem like an essential part of any history lesson.  Reading and creating timelines is a skill all students should practice, so I would like to share an online option for doing so:  Timetoast!  Timetoast is a website where you can browse for or create your own digital timelines.  Creating an account is required to make your own timelines, but doing so is free!

If you would just like to browse an account is not necessary and you can search for a specific term, or look through categories to find the timeline to fit your needs.  Timelines that are available for viewing on the site are made by other users....so be sure to look them over carefully for accuracy before sharing them with students.

If you can't find one that works, try making one!  Creating a time line is easy!  Simply click to add an event, put in the date, add a title, and a description, and even add a picture if your would like.  The time span is automatically put in for you as you build your timeline.  Click here to see a timeline I made in about 5 minutes.

Once you have found a timeline or made your own, you can link to them, or embed them in your website.  Below is an example timeline I found about the life of Steve Jobs:

Happy timelining!

This.......Is.......Jeopardy Labs!!

Everyone loves a good Jeopardy review game!  And, I've seen them come in all forms....from overhead projector transparencies, to poster board, to game consoles, to SMART Notebook templates, and beyond.  Here is another to add to your repertoire!

Jeopardy Labs is an online resource for creating your very own Jeopardy templates.  It's very easy to type in your own answers and questions in the editor.  The site even allows you to save your template with a password so you can come back to edit it at another time.  You do not need to create an account to use the site, since each game created gets it's own URL address.  However, creating an account is a possibility for (what I am assuming is) a one-time price of at least $20.00.  An account allows you to see a list of all your created templates, control privacy settings on your templates, and delete templates.

Once you've finished creating your template, you can play the game with up to 12 teams, and even keep track of the score and used Answer clues right in your web browser.....or download it and play it from a Flash player on your computer, no Internet needed!

If you're not in the mood to create your own Jeopardy game, you can browse for games created by others and use them as-is or tweak them to fit your needs.

Check out this 8th Grade Science Vocab Game that I found and modified:
http://jeopardylabs.com/play/8th-grade-science-vocabulary2


Oh, and the theme song is NOT included. For those of you who would like to download it from televisiontunes.com click -----> HERE   :)

Online Word Searches

 Looking for word searches that you can use on your Interactive Whiteboard?  Here's a couple:

Online Word Search has a few hundred pre-made word searches that you can complete online.  Choose from different categories to match what you are doing in your curriculum.  I like how the words are sometimes a little challenging...making for a great vocabulary-expanding teachable moment.

Freeology offers a Make Your Own Word Search tool that creates a simple word search, perfect for use on your Interactive Board.  Simply list the words you would like to include and then use the tabs above the gadget to customize further, if so desired.  Once you create a puzzle, it appears in a new window or tab and you use the cross hairs to locate and highlight words.  Once found, the question mark by the word in the list disappears.  The only downfall is that the puzzles cannot be saved.  So, make sure you print them out if you would like to keep them before you reload the page or close your browser. 

Happy searching!

My Fake Wall - A compromise?

Today's site is My Fake Wall.  I'm really excited about this site because I think it will get your students excited.  Basically, My Fake Wall is a site that imitates a Facebook wall.  There are no ties to Facebook and the "social interaction" like that of a real Facebook wall is removed.

The site can be used to create personalized Facebook walls for literary characters, historical figures, or even elements, scientists, inventors, mathematicians, and more!  Just use your imagination!  Believe me, this is more work than it sounds like.  Students who are tasked with creating a Fake Wall have to find pictures, think of the appropriate friends to add, find pictures for the friends, and then make comments and posts that would be relevant to the person and their friends.  I truly believe that this would be a worthwhile project....and one that the students would enjoy!

I spent a little time creating the beginning of a wall for one of my favorite characters: here.  Also, here are some other examples: Hermes, Ben Franklin, Cinderella.  Check it out and leave any comments telling me about any ideas you are having for how to use this with your students!

**NOTE** - This site may be blocked in your district.  If so, I would like to inform you that it was designed to be an educational site only.  There is no inappropriate content on the site.  I think that this is a great way to meet the students halfway and it would be an excellent tool to get them to analyze the important information surrounding a real or fictitious person.  To unblock the site, simply write an email to your principal, and explain that the site is educational.  They should then be able to speak to a tech and unblock the site.

NCES Kids' Zone - Awesome Graphing Tool

The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) has a section of their site called Kids' Zone.  It drew my attention the other day when I was shown (by a wonderful teacher) the graphing tool from the site, called Create a Graph.  I was blown away with how easy to use the tool is as well as what great graphs you are able to print from it. 

Create a Graph allows you to create bar graphs, line graphs (both of which can be turned into multiple bar or line graphs), area graphs, pie graphs, and xy coordinate graphs.  It is a simple process of working through simple tabs to set up the design, enter the data, and preview your graph.  Once it has been created, you can print it, download it as a picture file, or email it to yourself so you are able to edit it in the future.

The tool would be a great way to integrate graphing into your lessons; an important piece for students to gain an understanding of data.  Try collecting data from your own classroom and plot out the results!  How do the heights of boys vs. girls compare?  What have the temperatures been for the past week?  How many students in the class prefer pepperoni pizza over cheese?  Try it out as a class or have your students make their own!

Make Beliefs Comix

There seem to be a growing collection of online comic strip editors.  The most recent one I've found is Make Beliefs Comix.

Students are able to go in to the site without making an account and choose from pre-made characters with various emotions.  Students can also customize the number of cells in the comic, the size of objects, background color, and more.  When students are finished, they simply print the comic out (either to a printer, or by "printing" to pdf).  The finished comic can also be emailed.

The site is a bit limited in the character selection, and you have to be careful since the site does not store comics...a reload or using the back button will cause you to lose your work.

Have fun!

 

CLICK TO MAKE LARGER

Kerpoof!

Kerpoof is a site hosted by Disney that is a great place for young students to be make pictures, write stories, practice spelling, and generally get creative!  Here's a list of what students can do on Kerpoof, straight from the website itself:

• Make artwork (even if you aren't good at drawing!)
• Make an animated movie (really! it's easy!)
• Earn Koins which you can trade for fun things in the Kerpoof Store
• Make a printed card, t-shirt, or mug
• Tell a story
• Make a drawing
• Vote on the movies, stories, and drawings that other people have made 

 

 See what your students think!

Grabba Beast, hilarious avatars or writing prompts

Another great site for building avatars is Grabba Beast.  Here, students can design a wacky beast that can be colored however they want.  I have also seen suggestions for this site to be used as a writing prompt, in that students can give their beast a story, or practice descriptive writing by going into details about the textures, behaviors, or smells of the beast they created.  Have fun!

Meet Sven, the kung-fu viking monster:

Xtranormal is xtra awesome

Good Monday morning.....

If you need a little pep for the beginning of your work week, I suggest you check out Xtranormal.  Xtranormal is a site where you can create your own mini movies using pre-made 3D characters and sets.  When creating a movie, you can control camera angles, actor expressions and movements, and background sounds and music.  Have your students re-create a scene from history or a book they just read.  You can sign up for a free account and have your students work from that to save their work and progress OR you can download the desktop software called State.

Here's one I made in about 5 minutes:




Here's one featured on the site:

Go crazy! Have fun! Create!

Museum Box Creator

UPDATE JANUARY 2013:  Museum Box is no longer a free tool.  Schools must register for an account and pay for services of this site.  While still a great tool for education, teachers must now pay to use any features. :(

Real quick post today, but still a good one!  Here's a website called Clarksons Box Creator Museum Box.  Students can use this site to make their own museum box by browsing pictures, sounds, and videos.  Have students highlight an event, or person using the appropriate items.  You can also sign in (for a free account) to save your work.  Have fun!

Prezi, make amazing presentations!

This is a bit of a late post today....sorry.  I was working on creating a nice example for today's website while running around the school this morning, and the day had begun to get away from me!

 Today's site is called Prezi.  With this amazing tool, you can create moving presentations that will absolutely captivate an audience.  Think of taking your predictable one-slide-after-the-next PowerPoint and making it into a zooming, moving, presentation!  I really can't even describe it....you have to see it!

So, here's one I made: Amber's Solar System Prezi:
(just click through by using the arrow)

Our Solar System on Prezi

Glogster

Hello all! I hope everyone had a great weekend!  If not, I have got the website to make your week!  Ok, so that might be overdoing it, but Glogster for education is one awesome site.  When you sign up for an account on Glogster (the free one) you are able to enroll up to 100 students under your teacher account.  Their passwords and usernames are completely controlled by you. 

So, what is it that the students can do once they are signed up, you ask?  They can make kickin' online posters, that's what!  With Glogster, students can sign in and create colorful and interactive posters using clip art, pictures, and backgrounds that come included with your account.  They can also upload their own pictures, videos, and sounds.  They can even add in links to websites outside Glogster.  Your students can save their work and come back to it later.  Once they are done, you can embed the glog into a webpage, email them, or print them! 

The site is really fun and offers a new way for students to display work.  I would love to see any examples if you choose to use Glogster.  I will even gladly help you set it up!

FotoBabble

Check out Fotobabble, a site you can use to upload pictures and record your own voice to go with them.

 The finished products are embeddable, so you can paste them into your website or blog.  Have students talk about a picture of a famous historical figure, or a species of animal, etc.

Here's one I made....

Bitstrips: Comics for your classroom

Today's site is one I am very excited about.  Bitstrips is an online comic creator.You can go in, create an account and proceed to making your own characters and comics.  I recommend this site for middle school to high school.  There is a version for education, but it has to be paid for.  So, when using the free version for everyone, be prepared to pre-screen because the content is not filtered.  Nothing tremendously offensive, but it's still good to monitor.  I would say that this site would be great for illustrating any concept in any subject area.  I made one for you to see (it's really easy!):



So, not very educational, but just to give you an idea of potential, I designed this character from scratch, controlled all her movements and facial expressions, and gave her speech bubbles and props.  So, you could design anyone from Marie Curie to Aristotle.  Have fun!

PhotoPeach

I've just found an online version of Photo Story.  Of course, you will not get the intricate detail-editing that you would with Photo Story, but PhotoPeach is a quick, easy, and free method of making slide shows that you can download, embed, email and share.  Put music to your pictures and captions too!  Then put it on your website to share!  Have fun!

Here's a quick one I made about my kitties!

Ollie & Dyna on PhotoPeach


You can also show a slide show in this format:


Ollie & Dyna on PhotoPeach

Aviary - Online Image Editing

Welcome back to the grind everyone!  The posting today is an amazing tool.  Edit images from any computer using Aviary, a free online creation tool.  I recommend starting with the Image Editor (Phoenix)  for beginners, but for more advanced users (possibly Art teachers and their students) go crazy with vector editing,  effects, or even the new Audio Editor (Myna)!

To get started, simply sign up for a free account so you can save you work, and start creating!

Make a Word Mosaic

Today I've got a site that is a combination of ELA and art!  Students could use this tool to enhance their book reports, poetry, lyrics, or speeches.  Simply put in some text, choose the shape and color of your mosaic and you have a wonderful piece of art!

Image Chef - Word Mosaic
Here's an example I did with a few ideas for what this tool could help students gain: