Visit Hemingway

I enjoy writing but I realize that I am not the most skilled writer. So, I decided to visit Hemingway. Why not learn from an expert?

Hemingway is a web site that will analyze your writing. Type whatever you desire into Hemingway, and it will highlight common errors, complex sentences, and even passive voice. Blue highlights are for adverbs, which should be used sparingly. Hover over purple highlights to see hints for a new word choice.

Just for fun, I will take the text above and test it out in the web app! Are you curious? Here are the results:

One use of passive voice, one adverb, and one sentence that was deemed hard to read. Give Hemingway a visit!

Pencil and Paper and Mix by 53

My new stylus came this weekend:

Simply put, it is amazing. It feels and writes like a pencil (or pen, paintbrush, whatever you wish!). You can even use the eraser as…well…an eraser!  I have long been a fan of Paper by FiftyThree and this stylus is helping me enjoy it even more. Paper by FiftyThree now has Think Kit built right in – a simple tool for diagramming.

What I enjoy, however, is the ability to remix. I love drawing and doodling, and remix allows a user to draw a picture and share it, OR remix something someone else has drawn and change it. Mix by FiftyThree is a great collaboration tool where users may “learn, sketch, play, write, design and think” with others.  Click here to view a remix I enjoyed and be sure to click “replay” to view the original picture.

2 Great Creativity Apps

Want to brand a custom logo or create an invitation? The Makr app makes it easy! This app was named “Best App of 2014” by Apple. Design a logo from one of their templates or design choices, then apply directly to products for a one-of-a-kind look. Create business cards, wedding invitations, graduation announcements, custom t-shirts, stationery, or even a logo for your classroom web site. There are in-app purchases for paper products, or a small fee for the digital version.

Paper by Fifty Three has made some great upgrades to their app.

Click here if you cannot view the video.

The drawing tools are amazing.

What caught my eye this time was the Think Kit. The Think Kit allows you to easily create graphic organizers – a wonderful tool for educators.

 Click here if you cannot view the video.

Remember, whenever we use tools to CREATE, we are using higher order thinking skills. Consider how you could use these tools in your classroom to have students CREATE something to demonstrate their understanding!

Everyone Needs Encouragement

Life has its struggles.

I know that my student teachers  work really hard. They are exhausted. I was trying to think of a creative way to encourage them. I decided to send some encouraging words – on a photo…because…I enjoy a photo with text!

I downloaded PicLab HD to test.  They offer a beautiful selection of artwork and overlays to add to photos. Not only that, I enjoy the handwritten font choices. It was quick and easy.

Here is the finished product:

Short, Sweet Stories

Life is full of stories…

• funny
• sad
• instructional
• etc.

I love Prezi’s newest app – Nutshell. 

It is so SIMPLE to use and turns your pictures into a short, sweet story to share with others.

All you do is snap 3 pictures, add captions, choose graphics and press play.

Nutshell turns it into an awesome video which can be shared through messaging, email, or social media.

I tested it out yesterday, not really knowing what I was doing…

Click picture

This morning I tried another one with my breakfast! I’m having fun with this one!

Click Image

Oh yes, you’ll love this app! Think about how you could use it in the classroom…portfolio samples, student work, projects, short story, capture student attention … be creative!

DOWNLOAD from iTunes ~ for FREE!

Best New Apps for April!

Yes, there are some great new apps and web sites out there just in time for spring!

1. Have you seen Google’s Smartbox by Inbox? It’s a mixture of physical mail and the inbox:

Click here to read more about it!

2. #Chromeselfie – Show your friends how you feel about articles!

3. Wiffi – A new way to connect to wifi.

4. The NEW Google search tool – try it out!

5. Amazon Dash – You’ll never run out of laundry soap again. Just press and it will be shipped to you from Amazon!

I hope you enjoyed these new products! And oh yes, Happy April 1st!

Frames Just for Fun!

This site is simply fun. Frame is a web site that will take any photo and place it into a scene for free! It takes four easy steps:

1. Choose your scene (all technology related)
2. Upload a screenshot or photo…or enter the URL of a site you want to showcase!
3. Adjust the cropping
4. Download the photo! (Or share via Facebook or Twitter)

That’s it!

Here are some scenes I’ve tested:

And, just for fun…I tried my own picture!

Flow Through Your Presentation with Flowvella

I get so excited when I use an app that works with our LMS!  I used Flowboard in the past in a very limited capacity. It is now Flowvella – and wow – they upped their features! Love it!

Flowvella allows a user to create an interactive presentation by adding navigation, videos, PDFs, and image galleries. 

The presentations are then stored in the cloud and are available to your audience to view, comment, or share. If you wish, you may even password protect your presentation.

Recently, I created a Flowvella for my course and added various YouTube videos I wanted the students to view. I was able to easily upload it to their cloud service, then I received an embed code which I used to embed into our course on Moodle:

Students may view the presentation as shown or full screen. The videos are embedded right into the presentation. Sweet!

With Flowvella Education (the $4.99 version for educators), you can:

CREATE AND CUSTOMIZE
• Add transitions to your web links
• Add and arrange objects on your screens
• Add photos and videos
• Pinch, zoom and crop your photos
• Send your objects forward and backward
• Add links to screens or to the web
• Add photo galleries

SHARE, VIEW AND PRESENT
• Export to PDF, print via AirPrint
• Present straight from your iPad, connect to a projector, or use AirPlay
• Flows work OFFLINE and are SAFE without an Internet connection
• Share your presentations with anyone via URL or PDF
• Share via Facebook, Twitter, email, or copy the Flow URL and paste anywhere

I am a fan of anything that makes the content visually appealing and easy to use for the teacher and students. Flowvella has my vote!

ThingLink Interactive – Revisited

Today I decided to revisit ThingLink. I wrote about it last year and enjoy the tool. However, I must admit that I haven’t used it in about a year as well! I received an email yesterday offering to me a free educator’s account which caused me to take a look again. “I’d like to invite you transition to our Free Education account that will allow you to easily register and manage up to 100 students and 1 classroom, and ensure they browse with safe and secure content for students. All you have to do is sign in to ThingLink and click the button below and your account will automatically gain educator status.” I’m glad I did! I can easily manage up to 100 students by sending them an access code.

If you aren’t familiar with ThingLink, it is “the leading platform for creating interactive images and videos for web, social, advertising, and educational channels. Be creative! Make your images come alive with video, text, images, shops, music and more! Every image contains a story and ThingLink helps you tell your stories.”

Simply choose a picture, click anywhere, and add a video, image, audio, or text.

This is the end result – click the image to go to ThingLink!

Hover over the image and click on any icon to open up a new source. Imagine what you could do with this in the classroom!  I could list a bunch of ways, but others have already done the thinking for me:

65 Ways to Use ThingLink in the Classroom 

73 Ways to Use ThingLink

Tutorials by ThingLink: Use Your Own Classroom Channel

One Image, Tons of Possibilities

It’s More than a TinyTap!

I downloaded a fun new app today – TinyTap.  At first glance, I thought it might be for younger children, but with a little bit of creativity, this app can be used for a multitude of things! Begin with a layout (choose from one of theirs or create your own), add text, clip art, or images.

Then finish it up by adding an activity.

An instructor could easily add PowerPoint slides, voice, video, and questions! The “game” is then shared via Twitter, Facebook, or sending an email link. Anyone with a web browser can play. Why not make a fun, interactive quiz? Here is my first attempt (basic, but you get the idea!):

This all is good news in light of Horizon’s 2015 report…blended learning is ramping up! Take a look:

(Read the full Horizon report here.)