Standards and Capstone

Standards

Using the Common Core Standards App, I was able to easily locate the specific standard I wanted to base my lesson on.

from Common Core Math Standards, 2nd Grade, Geometry

I think that it is very helpful to have an app that can take you directly to the Common Core Standards.  We have to include them in our lesson plans, so it's helpful to have a quick way to look them up.  

Capstone Lesson Plan

I chose to do a lesson on building an Angry Birds castle. In this lesson, students are identifying and assembling 3D shapes (angry birds) as well as creating a structure that can withstand forces of nature.  It is meant to be a collaborative project where students will work in teams.  Students will build and test their own structures as well as record their process and results.  Students will complete a reflection and create a ShadowPuppet story of their project which will be presented to the teacher and possibly the class.

source for picture: RundesRoom

Link to the Angry Birds Lesson Plan 

Augmented Reality

From ColAR Mix App

From TamAR - Tamar Estuary

AR apps incorporate some amazing technology where the user is able to move around objects and similar to a QR code connect to information or videos with a click.  Elementary students are amazed by AR! We use ColAR app in the art room.  Students get to see images that they colored come to life!  More apps are created everyday and this is great for education because students are engaged and interested in learning new information through the AR interface.  I noticed that the Guinness World Record books from last year and this year have sections of pages that you can use with their AR app.  The people in the pictures in the book come to life on your device.  That is way cool!  I think creating books that use AR would be great to use in education.

QR Codes

QR codes (like bar codes) are everywhere! I've seen them at restaurants, in stores, in newspapers, etc. By scanning a QR code you can instantly be connected to a website or download a file.  QR codes are becoming quite popular in schools as well.  Students can with a simple click in a QR code scanner be connected right to the information they need.  No more typing lengthy addresses into your web browser. QR codes are much quicker and can lead you to exactly where you need to go.

In the art room, I've used QR codes to create links to student portfolios on our Artsonia website.  I then attach the QR codes to their artwork that is displayed in our art show.  I could also use QR codes around the classroom to take students directly it what they need to know in a particular center...or even a web page I've created with ideas.  I could post QR codes at our art show to play slide shows of students working in the classroom.



I think students would catch on quick to using QR Codes for accessing information in the classroom. I think that it would be helpful for the students to have more access to the iPads.

Here are three QR codes I created using this website

Research and Reference

Citations

I used the EasyBib app and found it extremely easy to use.  If I was writing research papers, I would love this!  I remember writing papers in college and always having to get out my handbook to look up the right way to cite books and periodicals...this makes it so easy! I love that you can copy and paste into a word document as well.

Dictionary

I downloaded two dictionary apps.  First, I checked out Dictionary.com. Then I looked at Merriam-Webster Dictionary.

I found both dictionary apps to be easy to use and provided the essential information I was looking for.  When looking up a word, both provided the word in a list with others words around it, as you would see in the dictionary.  Both gave full definitions. Both showed the origin and history of the word.  Both allowed for the word to be spoken.  Both apps have a word of the day feature as well as a Favorites feature.  The Merriam-Webster app also had a recent searches feature that Dictionary.com did not.

Overall, I think I liked the Dictionary.com app better.  Some of the bonus features were that Dictionary.com also includes a translator, which can also speak the word or phrase in the new language.
This app also included a blog:

And a slideshow feature:

I also like that it had trending words, and that in the Word of the Day, you could also view the words for the week as well as scroll through previous day's words.

Online Bookmarking

Using Diigo is very similar to using Pinterest.  I didn't really see how it is much different.  I actually think Pinterest is great to use.  I like the way you can organize sites or pages you want to refer to on boards by topics.  In Diigo you can make lists...though, I think that is only online or something.  A tutorial I watched mentioned the list, but they were using it online.

Here is a screenshot of me saving a page to Pinterest in the Diigo Browser.

Pinterest is such a time saver for me.  I no longer have to wade through long lists of multiple folders with tons of bookmarks...it's all set up for me. I like the visual organization of the boards.  I like that you an share your boards with people and on Pinterest you an create secret boards, too!  My only problem is everything seems like a good idea and I have well over 2000 pins! Many of my pins are broken links now, since I've first started pinning.  And I really need to break down my Art Classroom board because it has so many pins, it takes too long to go through them.  

Study Skills and Visual Thinking

Study Skills

Using apps on the iPad to help students study and learn is a great application for the classroom.  In Quizlet teachers can create flashcards and students are able to practice with and learn the content needed for their class.  I really liked the matching feature for the card set that I made.  I thought that would be a fun game to play with the cards and that students would enjoy that.  The only thing that would make this better for lower elementary kids is if you could click to have it read to you.  Here is the a screenshot of the Quizlet app.

In art class I could use this app for art terms we are using.  I could also upload pictures on the website and create a set that students could identify like: portrait, landscape, still life, etc.

Mind Mapping

Popplet is a mind-mapping application that is great for brainstorming or creating presentations. Here is a Popplet I created about Vincent Van Gogh. 

I think students could easily manipulate the features in this app to create a similar Popplet about their favorite artist or art style.  I like that it's so easy to add photos and that you can change the colors.  Linking the Popples is quick and easy and I also like that you can easily move them if needed after they are created.  I think another great use for this would be to do a seating chart, assign centers...making a popple for each student and then moving their popple to where they will be working.  I also like this idea from a teacher who used Popplet to assign jobs in her classroom.

I think I could easily make something like this up ahead of time and then display it on my SmartBoard.  The free version is limited, but I think I could have students work in teams or share by taking turns creating their popplet.  I am actually thinking about how I will manage iPads better in my classroom next year.  Im thinking of doing a punchcard or checklist of the apps I would like them to try.  This way they aren't always using the same apps and they are trying new things.  Still thinking about how that will work in a class though.

Creative Expression: Drawing Apps

BRUSHES

Since I've had my iPad, I carry it with me most everywhere I go.  Sometimes I want to sketch something.  If I don't have my drawing stuff and my sketchbook, I will draw on my iPad.  I learned that David Hockney uses the Brushes app for his work on the iPad, so I tried it...hoping I could do something as awesome as him!  This particular drawing I am working on (still in progress) was from a photo I took of my daughter drawing on a banana box.  The little drawings she made were super adorable and I wanted to show her creative spirit and how she didn't need a nice piece of paper to draw on, she just wanted to draw and spent hours working on this particular box.  I used the photo for the first layer, and then changed the opacity, so I was able to do the drawing on top of the photo in another layer.

PAPER by 53

This is my new favorite app! I love this mostly because I really have enjoyed drawing in my Moleskine notebooks over the past several years.  This app simulates a digital version of a Moleskine.  You can create several journals, sketchbooks or notebooks and you can customize your covers.  The free version comes with limited tools, but you can buy the rest through in app purchases: a fountain pen, markers, drawing pen, pencil and a watercolor brush. And here's the kicker...if you love your finished journal enough, you can get it printed with your custom cover and pages for like $40.  Seems kind of pricey, I know.  But the real Moleskines are close to $20 anyway.  I haven't filled a notebook yet.  But when I do, I plan to try the printing thing to see how it looks. 

This is a screenshot of the books I've created in Paper:

and this is a screenshot of a page spread in my sketchbook, with the tools displayed:

and yes, I did all that with my finger. At this point, I haven't found a stylus I love.  Paper 53 makes a Pencil Stylus that looks intriguing though!  It's only $60! ;)

Creative Expression - Audio Expression in Garage Band

Garage Band is a popular app that allows you to create songs.  I already have Garage Band installed on my iPad.  My kids have used it.  This is my first time using it.
I chose a simple little poem I found about Glue on the Teachers Pay Teachers site.
I made up a tune for it and recorded myself singing it.
I liked the way the drums work, how you just drag the drums/instruments into the box and how you can make them louder/quieter or more/less complex. It was super easy to add a rhythm track and I also added a piano track.  I wanted guitar, but I couldn't figure it out, without knowing notes.  Here is the link to my Garage Band song on YouTube:  The Glue Song