Cool Tools for Schools!
1. PreZentit
With this tool students will be able to create presentations very easily and quickly! This tool allows for students to work together on a presentation at the same time. The presentations can be downloaded and used without internet connection and can be kept private or made public for others to view! I would use this in my classroom during group presentations so that my students will be able to work together even when they are not at school. Also since the presentation can be made public I can view their progress as they work, this would make it easier for me to give students guidance if I see they are struggling or falling behind.
2. iNetWord
This tool is very cool and could be very beneficial when used for collaborative group works. The tool allows for different people to work on a project separately, showing their own personal work, and the changes that other group members have made. This means a teacher can evaluate the work and see if some students did not help. I would love to use this tool in my classroom, because it would allow me to see if some students aren't performing and putting all of the work on their classmates. This tool changes the group project atmosphere completely, because each student can be graded individually for their own work and then graded for the overall group collaborative work.
3. Wolfram Alpha
This tool allows for a student to search a question and get reliable information in turn quickly. The website that is wolfram alpha is a self computing computer that has been compiling information at a high pace for some time. The tool is always gaining new information and ways to answer questions. I would use this in my class specifically for research papers to get my students away from the idea of just goggling everything. This website will help my students not only get a few answers to the questions they have but also keep them from plagiarizing someone else's work from a random website they find on Google.
4. Tubechop
This tool allows for a student to find specific videos that interest them. Then it allows for the student to chop and edit the video down to the part that specifically is interesting to them or a project they are working on. After a student chops the video they can share the clip they've made with others. Using this in class would be great for students to use in a multimedia class. They can use videos and clips to create montages that help teach a lesson to other students.
5. Authorstream
With this tool a student will be able to create a publish a slideshow. They will also have the ability to upload the slide directly to YouTube. They can also create there own "showcase," to share their presentations with other students or a teacher. I would use this in my classroom because it would give the students a chance to show me their presentations as they work on them, giving me an opportunity to give hints or suggestions. Also other students could see all of their classmates slideshows anytime after they are presented to see the information presented by another and comment on them.
6. Audacity
This tool is a free way to record and edit different sounds or audio clips. It is available in many different operating systems. This tool provides an easy way to share new sounds with others. I would use this in my class room for multimedia projects so my students could add audio clips to slideshows or videos. This would allow for them to advance a slideshow and allow for more creativity.
7. Montage
This tool allows for students to group together different visuals of web based materials to share with others what you find interesting. The montage can be made from many different web sources and can be easily pieced together. Some websites include YouTube, Newsfeed, Twitter, and Bing News.
I would use this in my classroom with research projects for my students to create an online collage of their topics. This would allow the student to share the information to others in more than just words, but pictures as well!
8. StudentPublishing
This tool allows a student to create their own hardback or paperback story books. The site allows a student to publish their own works. Also the tool lets a student share this information with others! I would use this tool in my classroom to allow students to research a topic and compile a large amount of easily readable information into a hardback or paperback book. This would make the student take pride in their work, and hopefully will encourage them to work harder on the project since it will be made into their very own book.
9. Yacapaca
This online tool allows a teacher to post previously uploaded or newly made quizzes to this site. The tool allows students to take these quizzes, and see how they did. The tool also allows a teacher to easily grade and collect information on how well a student did, and what they are struggling with. I would use this in my class so that I can see how my students are doing with the information I have presented them. Also I would use it so the students can have almost immediate feedback on how well they did on the quiz.
10. Zunal WebQuest Maker
This tool makes it possible to make a WebQuest quickly, easily and without having to us HTML. The tool has up to 100 different templates that can be used. Also the tool allows one to attach unlimited pages, images, and videos. I would use this in my classroom because it would make making WebQuest for students very easy and fun to do! Also I could use this tool to have my students create their own WebQuest and have their fellow students follow along with them
