:Talking SMARTBoards & Much More!

Microsoft Mouse Mischief is a new tool that integrates technology by allowing students to actively participate in lessons by using their own individual mouse to interact with a teacher directed lesson without leaving their desks!! The mice (no special mice are required) are attached to one computer allowing for more access and collaboration for everyone in the class.  Mouse Mischief integrates with PowerPoint 2007 and 2010 by allowing teachers to insert questions, polls, and drawing activity slides into your lessons. Students click, circle, cross out or draw answers on the screen. The results are quickly available to teachers for review.  Click here to view some sample lessons.  ENJOY!

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Curriculum Bits is an awesome free resource  of interactive multimedia elearning resources. The online resource library contains games, quizzes, animations and videos in a variety of subjects. Resources have been produced according to the UK National Curriculum for students aged 11 to 16.  To view and use any activity you simply pick the activity and then click on the Play button.  The activity will open in a new screen. You do not need to register to access any of the resources, but if you do opt for the free membership you will receive their Email Newsletter and will be alerted when new activities are added to the library.  ENJOY!

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Historyofflag[1]- I created this SMART Notebook lesson on the history of the United States flag last year in preparation of a Flag Day (June 14th) celebration.  In light of flag day being right around the corner I thought I would share. Click on the link to open/download the lesson. ENJOY!

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Memorygame  I created a simple memory game template using Fact Flippers from the Activity Toolkit that I thought others might be able to use. Click on the link to open/download the Notebook file. ENJOY !

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Kerpoff has a wonderful on-line spelling application called Spell a Picture that works well on the SMARTBoard and is very engaging for young children (K-2) and Special Education students.   Students choose a background from a selection of three and a keyboard will appear at the bottom of the screen.  As the students  type a letter pictures will pop into the screen. They then complete spelling the word based on the pictures that appear.  Very fun, very reinforcing for a spelling activity!  When they have completed spelling the word you select the picture to appear in their scene.  The pictures can be moved and when scrolled over with your mouse the word appears again.  Each scene can be then printed.  Below is an example of a scene I created with some Kindergartners. ENJOY!

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In honor of the 30th anniversary of PacMan, Google is letting you play  for free!  Simply head over to Google and click on the Insert Coin button and have a little FUN! Thanks Google! ENJOY!

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A third grade teacher asked me for fraction review resources she could use with the laptops and I was reminded of the great  IXL Math website.  This website is the ultimate math site for review, covering grades Pr-K- 6.  This site is user friendly and addresses all of the math skills students address in each of those grade levels.  Simply click on the desired grade level and a new page will appear with several activities that address specific skills.  Each skill level is broken down into categories for easy access.  The Pre-K- 1st grade activities also provide auditory support.  There also is a State Standards component where you can find activities directly correlated to the math standards of your state.  IXL Math does have a subscription option that is very helpful to assess and record student data.  The fee for a classroom is $199 for a year.  There is a 30 day free trial option that is worth checking out.  The activities work well with the SMARTBoard as a small group review.  ENJOY!

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My friend, Sharon, just sent me a link to this really cool new site called ZooBurst and I had to share!  ZooBurst is a digital storytelling tool that allows you to create your own 3D pop-up books– I said it was cool!!  This application is completely web based. It does require the Adobe Flash plug-in.  You can easily upload your own images and customize them and narrations can be added to images.  In addition you are able to embed your ZooBurst in your blog or wiki,etc.  Their FAQ section indicates they “will be releasing a “class management” feature inside ZooBurst that will allow teachers to set up classes, create assignments and set up usernames & passwords for your students. In the interim you can always log into ZooBurst on behalf of your students. ZooBurst will allow you to access your account from multiple computers at the same time, so if you are in a computer lab simply log into the site for each student and have them create their own books.”  The site is still in Beta form, but indicates that they are accepting new users on a rolling basis so if you’re interested head over and request an account! ENJOY! Click here if you would like to view the demo on their site.

Update- Just checking my Blogline account and saw a post about ZooBurst by both Larry Ferlazzo and Richard Byrne.

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 Online Stop Watch is a nice, simple, free stop watch that you can quickly and easily program.  This application presents very well on the SMARTBoard. ENJOY!

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I learned of Chogger , a comic generator, yesterday via Neil Ringrose (Diigo) and was very impressed so wanted to share. What I really liked was the ease at which you can add and/or draw your own images. In addition, you can easily change the shape, content and amount of cells you want for your comic.  The entire process is very user friendly. You do need to create an account to save your work, which requires an email address. I can also say from personal experience that the support from the folks over at Chogger is outstanding (thanks Jim!). It also appears that you can create one account for younger students and each student can be simultaneously creating comics with that one log-in. As an example I have embedded a comic created by Ryan that I discovered on the site.  ENJOY!

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