Serving up a plate of Mash

I'm getting hungry thinking about mashed potatoes and peas with a side of meat, maybe a little salad on the side. Sounds like a well-rounded meal to me. What do you mean it's a different kind of 'mash'? What's being mashed, and what's it being mashed with? I guess I'll have to figure out what the terms Animoto, VoiceThreads and Glogster mean.

This is something new for me - this blended Internet technology. Multimedia (according to Wikipedia) includes a combination of text, audio, still images, animation, video, and interactive content forms. It consists of multimedia creations combining different two or more programs and is referred to as Mashup. One service offers joining images with sound such as the company Animoto with the Animoto Platform. The history behind the 'montage' comes from Sergei Eisenstein who in 1925 presented photographic-montages with film. (McPherson, 2009). What makes this old concept so appealing is that it's quick and easy, looks professional and our students can relate to it due to the MTV like video presentation.

Animoto.com allows you to create your own videos from your images and music. You can even remix your creation and remake the video as no two videos are ever the same.

In researching this topic, I can across an article Moviemaking for dummies. It stated that Animoto allows for the following: royalty-free music can be used in your videos with a range from classical to hip-hop, you can uploaded to YouTube, you can 'spotlight' more important pictures by appearing longer and brighter than others, and text can also be added - limits are 20 characters on top line & 30 on bottom. These are the basic components to how this program has been set up.

Let me share with you some of the advantages and disadvantages of using this program in a school setting. The big plus is that you don't have to be a techie to create the movie itself. Actually, there is more time is required to sort out what to use than in creating the final product. You have to decide what you want to create, take the pictures or find them free online, and then find the right musical accompaniment. Once the pieces are readily available - it's only a matter of minutes.

In Mashing literacy McPherson discusses some pros and cons of using Animoto at the middle school level. He refers to the learning styles that this medium addresses where they can "communicate complex ...messages [in] a multimodal nature" and reach a larger audience. The T-L can advance the "literacy concepts and communication practices" beyond reading and writing. Also the 'freshness' in using visuals is engaging for students. The developing of online social skills can also be addressed. Some skills include: uploading, embedding into wikis, posting to blogs, or downloading. I see the lead role to teach plagiarism and Creative Commons which is paramount in this mashup adaptation. Oh yeah - it's free:)

There are a few disadvantages; this first being access. Can Animoto be accessed at school? That depends on whether you have high speed Internet access. With the web-based application and having, as McPherson states, a "heavy reliance on Adobe's band-width hungry Flash Player", this could shut down the loading prospects. Even if you try it with one machine and see that it works - what will happen when 30 students are trying to get on at the same time?

Another factor is that even though it's free - it's limited in how long the videos are; thirty seconds is not very long. Our school doesn't have a budget for the cost of the extra license.

The tools for editing could be developed more. When the photos and the music don't match up, something gets left out. Granted there is a warning about the number of slides, but the audio component has no options available to fade, focus, etc. Hey - there's a suggestion for the next version - there's always another version coming to you soon.

The real question is how does it apply to the curriculum? Is it educationally sound? Does it offer the value for the time invested? That ties in nicely with the next component on application.

Animoto in School

Animoto looks so professional - how can we use it in school to our advantage? Many instructional possibilities exist with T-L's and classroom teachers in using this interactive technology. McPherson suggests that to develop critical online thinking and communication skills, T-L's can teach the concepts of copyright and plagiarism by exploring how "Internet visuals and music can be accessed, downloaded, and imported" into this program. Questioning whose work is being provided in the program? The artist of the music is documented, but the photos aren't. Other Internet related questions could also provide for teachable moments. Publishing concerns can be brought to their attention with discussing and establishing safe and effective posting practices. In this discourse, the benefits and dangers of publishing online could include the formation of safe social networking guidelines.

What specific subject areas could be utilized? In art - students can showcase their work or the works of famous artists being studied; in a portfolio, contain photos, music and text. How about introduce a theme or concept? Use it for inspiration for creative writing, or showcase student work. McPherson suggestions include: collecting mathematical shapes, creating a visual timeline for socials, and with science - the stages of photosynthesis or the lifecycle of a mammal's life. It's so cool - how could you not use it?

Here are some ideas as well as some specific examples:
Literature Circle Introductions - Novel trailers
Create reflections on key aspects of a unit or year end, etc.
English - Grammar - examples
Socials - Historical pictures of the timelines covered
Assembly - Remembrance Day - war images

Hello Animoto
Springfield Montage

Georgetown Elem Library or try http://animoto.com/play/631ri1d6wJAsYE1pmx0Sog#share


Travelling

We know students prefer online use over printed books therefore we need to engage them with new forms of technology. Animoto was one example. Voicethreads is another form of multimedia that is highly interactive.

Connecting Around the World with Voices! Am I hearing things?

What is this thing called VoiceThread, and how is it applicable at school?

VoiceThread is also known as a group audio blog where group conversations occur around images, documents and videos. It allows users to record text and audio comments around uploaded images. The key components to make VoiceThreads work are motivation with technological flare.

Some advantages to using this tool would be that it is asynchronous and engaging. That big word means that many can use it at the same time anywhere in the world. The engaging part is that not only are there pictures, but there is audio as well. It's like a focused conversation going on about a topic of interest. It's really neat because you respond to the initial concept and to others comments. It creates 'digital citizenship' by practising responsible behaviours inline. There can be thousands of people engaged at a time and it allows for 35 comments on a page. One free account can have 50 pages!

The disadvantages are in the time it takes to systematically set up the whole the experience, making sure your audio works - yes I know you can text - but realistically the audio is the selling feature, and then how would you evaluate the activity. The length of time of the sections is not evident. The doodle tool needs more explanation - I questioned where it was and how do I use it? There is no spell check option with the text feature either.

It does offer some fabulous opportunities. In my research, I found a wiki where some very informative links lead to specific information covering all aspects of Voicethreads.
In Using Voicethread Digital Conversations, there are some possible questions to tackle this thought provoking resource in school. What can you learn about the values of a country or a culture by studying images? Is Global Warming having an impact on our world? Has urbanization helped or harmed our community? Where can evidence of math be found in our daily lives? Is graffiti a form of artistic expression or simply vandalism? Who are heroes?

I've also included some examples of how VoiceThreads can be used.
English - poetry cafe readings allowing for interpretations
Second Language students - images assist with understanding of cultural beliefs
Novel study - with illustrations
Socials - Medieval studies - images of different aspects and compare how they have changed in modern day - eg buildings, art, clothing - Have these changes been for the better? Why?

To share what a VoiceThread looks and feels like, please see the following examples and maybe even contribute - I did:)

VoiceThread Tutorial

100 ways to use voicethread in edu


Wondering about Web 2.0
This one challenges your thoughts on teaching with Web 2.0 technology.



Think Deeply and then add some Flash

As if this wasn't enough so far - the last program I looked into is Glogster. A ‘glog’ is basically an online poster web page - sort of. Students can combine text, pictures, graphics, video, and audio to create an interactive online poster according to K-12 Techsters. Recommended by Joyce Valenza, she says that it proves to be an alternate way of allowing students to present and share their work.

In my other research, I found In Glog: Virtual Online Posters. On this glog, some advantages include comments that revolve around these posters not being stagnant, addition of audio and video, inserting onto wikis and blogs. They allow for decisions on choice, content, presentation, etc. This is highly interactive with editing options.

Why does it always take so long to load? I can hear the questions already. It's not working! The downsides include too much bandwidth on the school server, can't print them with our black and white printer, too much time can be wasted 'playing' with the features taking away from the content. This could be frustrating for the students - they don't get it sometimes. Another drawback is that it might be blocked at your school - so check it out at your school and ask your techs to unblock the educational site before spending too much time on it. Oh, and it can be very time consuming - addictive even:0.

There certainly is some value with using this as an alternative to the traditional poster or PowerPoint. In the classroom topics can include: environmental heroes - covering science and socials; bilingualism that incorporates collaborating skills and history; math sharing interactive sites to use; reading practise again linking to sites; and class collections of poetry compilations.

Here are some links for ideas:

Blog On! - overview of glogs at school

Metronet Information Literacy Initiative - Online Posters

Web 2.0

Examples
Shakespeare
Reading - Practise Sites
Math - Practise Sites
A Trip to Europe - Decisions
-World-Wide Collaboration - Incorporated into a wiki

Unfortunately I haven't had enough time to really delve into this experiment. My initial glog showed me that it is quick, creative, engaging and can take a lot of your time.
I created an example of a glog I will use at school. It still needs some editing, but you get the idea. Languages Dept - What second language will you take next year? Spanish, French, Japanese.
Languages at Middle School

That's a Wrap - Pun intended

What do you get when you wrap Animoto, VoiceThread, and Glogs together? A multimedia experience extraordinaire. Is it actually possible? I can actually see the Animoto and Glogs being presented in a VoiceThread. - That would be fabulous! Now, how can we wrap that up?

Wow, there has been so much in such little time - it isn't possible to really do any of these applications any justice in a couple of days. My appetite sure has been whetted and I have much work to do to be able to present and use these in my school setting. First I have to make sure these programs can be accessed at school - if not, I'll have to sweet talk the techs to unblock the educational sites. Next, I will have to start slow and small. Get some teachers onside that will use these tools that the students will love. I'll start with the art teachers and go from there. I will draw attention to the VoiceThread Connections with Web 2.0 with my principal and district superintendent. We all need to be challenged in our thought processes.

Where will this go? With hard work and the enthusiasm that it will create, I can see this reaching throughout the school and into the district as a connective approach to increase the interacting with teachers, students through technology. I feel technology is advancing but it's a matter of going about it in the right manner for sustainability. In our district there is a concern over needing more technology. The implementation of these programs are how we can begin to close the gap between the digital natives and the digital immigrants in school. This is like a can of Alphaghetti where there are multiple possibilities - learning new words/tools, playing with it to understand, and then eating or devouring it. Let the fun begin:)

Did it Work? If not, I can edit it.

Animoto in the works - In order for this to be original I had to take some pictures. This assumes one has a camera. (I dropped mine in a lake a while ago and it wasn't waterproof:( ) I had to borrow a camera, take some pictures, figure out how to get them on the computer, edit them, and then upload them. And you thought it was just pick some pictures and upload them. I'm sorry I won't be creating any music - so I will be using options from the Animoto program. I tried one to match the theme of my blog and posted it. It's called Travelling. Then I created one on the author Chris Van Allsburg after taking pictures of the books I own. Once the groundwork was done, the uploading was easy - the program really does do all the work. I'll use my author one in the library highlight his works. Maybe I can put it on one of those portable photo frames and place it in the display. The wheels are turning.

Chris Van Allsburg on Animoto
or try http://animoto.com/play/0b2PxyeMBjTHTAu4lKUN9Q?autostart=true


In creating a glog, I took some time to see what was available. Had to keep the idea simple due to the time constraint. I realized I couldn't edit when I wanted to - not sure if it was because the program took too long to load - it seemed to just freeze. I couldn't add the links I wanted to either. The program wouldn't allow me to edit certain features - so it looks unfinished right now - I'll go back an edit it later. I saved my work and went to retrieve it only to not be able to find it - frustrating. OK re-do it. Did I mention that time is valuable? Have a look at the Languages at Middle School I created.


For VoiceThread - I set up an account. Had a look at the existing ones and made a list of over 40 to go back and check out. One I did focus on was the 100 Ways to use VoiceThread in edu. [add link] I've added to this VoiceThread by incorporating an Ancient Egypt example of sharing the stages of mummification. It was in a text format because I don't have a microphone. I even tested the mic on my computer and it didn't work. I'll have to work on that too.

My vision of a VoiceThread will take some time for planning to incorporate it. I'll share my idea - let me know what you think. I took pictures to create a drawing opportunity. I decided upon manga, Japanese style drawing. I photographed the drawings and separated the sections into faces, characters, actions, format, etc and will use the sequential order to allow users to draw over the pictures and practise before trying to put it all together. People can offer suggestions, hints, add their techniques. It's an exciting prospect. Sorry, I ran out of time on getting that up and running.

Sources

Anonymous . Voice Thread. (2009, March). Principal Leadership, 9(7), 8. Retrieved from ProQuest Education Journals. (Document ID: 1662489961).

Ferriter, Bill. (2009, June). Using Voicethread for Digital Conversations. Digitally Speaking Wiki. Retrieved from http://digitallyspeaking.pbworks.com/Voicethread
Retrieved from http://digitallyspeaking.pbworks.com/Voicethread

Hurt, Kevin. (2008, November). Moviemaking for Dummies. Retrieved from http://thehurt.wordpress.com/2008/11/13/moviemaking-for-dummies/

K-12 Techsters. (2009, April). Glogster.com. Retrieved from http://medt3401.blogspot.com/2009/04/glogstercom.html

McPherson, Keith. (2008, June). mashing literacy. Teacher Librarian, 35(5), 73-75. Retrieved from ProQuest Education Journals. (Document ID: 1502965521).

Metronet Information Literacy Initiative - Online Posters (2009, May). Retrieved from
http://metronetmili.pbworks.com/Online-Posters

Valenza, Jioyce. (2008, December). Glogster for educators (and for student posters!). Retrieved from http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/blog/1340000334/post/1130037513.html

Vincent, Tony. (2009, April). Glogs: Virtual Online Posters. Retrieved from http://azk12.org/blog/archives/40-Glogs-Virtual-Online-Posters.html

Wondering about Web 2.0 (2008, March 25). Retrieved from http://ed.voicethread.com/share/90321/