Movie Maker

This past week, we learned about Windows Movie Maker. It's an awesome program that allows you to use pictures and music to make a movie. It's similar to PowerPoint, but with movie making in mind. My assignment was to make a 2-minute movie. I decided to make it on my son, Shaun. I took various pictures of him from birth to now, uploaded them to the program. I added captions to the pictures, then added music, and voila!...a movie was made. Movie Maker is user-friendly, and I didn't come across any issues. The hardest thing was adjusting the timing of the music to the amount of time in the movie. All I had to do was figure out when I wanted my music to start, and then type in the time frame. Overall, great program. This is now my favorite assignment, so far, in IT365.

Movie Maker can be used by teachers to make a movie of class activities, and then it can be given to parents. It could also be added to the class page/website. This could also be used as an enhancement on a lesson. This program ties in with the NETS-T in standard 2, Design and Develop Digital-Age Learning Experiences and Assessments. The teacher can customize learning activities to address students' diverse learning styles, working strategies, and abilities by using digital tools and resources. This program can also tie in with Standard 3, Model Digital-Age Work and Learning. A teacher can communicate relevant information and ideas effectively to students, parents, and peers by using different digital-age media and formats.

Below is the movie I made using Movie Maker. 

                                                                      

Web Tools

This past week was about exploring different web tools that assist teachers in the classroom. There are many websites out there that make things a little easier for teachers, and they are mostly free! My assignment was to go to 5 websites and create something from each. The five websites were: ABCTeach, Wordle, RubiStar, Quizlet, and EclipseCrossword. The different web tools would tie into the NETS-T with standard 2, Design and Develop Digital-Age Learning Experiences and Assessments. A teacher should provide students with various assignments that is aligned with content and technology standards, and to use the resulting data to inform learning and teaching.

ABCTeach is a site where teachers can print various worksheets for the students, such as coloring pages. Some things are free, but there are some things that you cannot print unless you pay to become a member. Wordle is a site that students may enjoy. I had to type out a list of words, and the program created a word cloud for me...very neat. RubiStar is free, and it helps teachers make a rubric. If not for the simplicity of this program, I would've been lost. The program gives examples and allows teachers to manipulate it, to create a rubric that would be understood by their students. Quizlet is a really great concept created by a young high school student. I created a test using this program, and I can see myself going back to this site...not only as a teacher but as a student. It allows students to prep for tests by making flash cards. It is a free site, and I wish I would've known of it earlier. EclipseCrossword allowed me to create a crossword puzzle. All I had to do was plug in words with definitions, and it was complete. Easy as that. A crossword would be a fun test prep for students, and it's free.

I thoroughly enjoyed this project. It has opened my eyes to different sites that will help assist me in the future. My favorite site was Quizlet. As a teacher, I can create tests and make it with different variables. A study sheet could easily be generated and printed out for the students. Oh, the possibilities!

Below is my word cloud created by Wordle.