The 10 Things
Hello! Welcome to Learning 2.0.
This tutorial is designed so that you can learn how to use the tools of web 2.0 for your classes or for fun.
You may do it on your own or as a part of a group; or you may even be assigned it for a class.
We hope that you will have fun – because these websites are full of creative ideas for you to use. Take time to explore and enjoy all the tools of this new Internet. Read on!
Here is a “teacher moment” for you:
A word for you to consider: responsibility.
Before you begin this tutorial, you need to know that you are entering the big world of the Internet and “social networking”. This means that you will possibly encounter images and ideas that may be different from those that you are used to. While we have limited the places we’re sending you, you will still be interacting with your fellow students in a way that you may not have done before. Therefore, we expect you to behave respectfully, be positive and when asked to critique others ideas, you will do so in a way that promotes learning and is constructive.
We first designed this tutorial for teachers. They had 23 Things to complete. You will complete 10 Things when you are done.
A “Thing” is an activity that you will do using one of the web tools.
How to do this tutorial:
1. Each section is to be done in a week.
2. Each week you get information about the website [or ‘tool’]
3. After you read the information, do each of the exercises.
4. Next, you have a “THING” to do. You must do this ‘THING”.
5. Last thing you need to do is to post about what you learned on your blog.
Week 1: Creativity. What is it?
Thing 1: Creativity. Please begin by watching this
Week 2: Blogging
You get to make your own blog! This is a very public - school - blog and you will be sharing your blog address with your teacher, the school Principal, your parents and your fellow students. All of these people might comment on your blog. You will receive extra credit for blog comments you make on other blogs plus when someone from outside of school makes comments on yours you’ll receive more extra credit! So spread the word among your family and friends.
Thing 2. Set up your own blog. We’re going to use BLOGGER for this tutorial. Sign on with a name that does not identify you, choose a password and then e-mail your blog URL to your teacher librarian or teacher. Add your first post, create an avatar — a representation of yourself. You may use another blog application if you like. They all have good things and not so good things about them.
Other blog applications you can investigate include: WordPress and California's K12 High Speed Network's edzone site. These may be more useful to use at school since they might not be blocked.
Activity 1: Go to YAHOO , design an avatar. There are lots of cool outfits, hairstyles and accessories to choose from! You can make it look like yourself, or….go wild! Have fun with it.
[HINT: Here's how to export your avatar to your blog. Go to the avatar Yahoo page and then go to "home" tab and look to the right column. One of the options is: "EXPORT: Use your avatar in web pages and blogs and more." Click there. Then, in the Center of the page, 0ne option is your avatar's HTML code. Copy the code, go to your blog. Each blog application (Blogger, Wordpress, edublog, typepad, and so on) has a unique method of exporting avatars and other images onto your pages. Be sure to use the ‘help’ menu within your application to work your way through any problems you run into. You can also call on your 2.o friends to help – just ask! NOTE: Another option is to save a copy of your Yahoo! Avatar or other image and paste it on your blog rather than exporting it.]
Register your blog . This means that after you create your blog, you will send an e-mail to your teacher. After you have received notice that your teacher has received your email, then you can begin with all the fun!
Your teacher will create a “blogroll” - a list of all the students who are taking the tutorial with you. These are the students you will work with and cheer along the way - that’s the 2.0 way!! Check their blogs regularly and comment on them. Ask them questions about how to do stuff if you’re confused, answer those who might need your help also. Cheer them on - have fun! Critique well! [Note: You can set up your own blogroll on your blog. It is as easy as 1-2-3. For example, in BLOGGER, 1- Go to top of your blog and click "customize". 2- Then, sellect "add a gadget". 3- Go down list of options and select "Blog List" -- add your classmates' blogs. Enjoy!]
Week 3: Photos & Images
FLICKR is a website used primarily for storing and sharing photos. You can use this site to download pictures you’ve taken and then you can share them with your family your friends or the whole world. A fun part of flickr is big huge labs – a site for playing with images.
Other sites to check out include: PhotoBucket and the K12 High Speed Network's edzone site.
Thing 3. Go to Flickr and take the tour. Blog about what you learned in this tutorial.
Thing 4. Explore Big Huge Labs and learn about this popular image hosting site.
Activity 2: Write on your blog ways that you can use Flickr to post pictures for your family. Discuss how you would choose which pictures you might keep private and which ones you might want to post so others could see them.
Activity 3: Create ONE project using any of the flickr toys from Big Huge Labs. You may create a presentation for any class you are currently taking.
Week 4: Images
One of the cool things that you can do with an image generator is to create cool cover pages for your reports. There are a million things you can do including party invitations, announcements, personalized letterhead images. You are limited only by your own imagination. Using a comic strip generator, you can make your own comics – excellent for reports as well as fun activities with your friends.
Activity 4: Create Trading Cards of favorite writers or illustrators. Include list of books written and their dates, if any of their books were made into movies.
Thing 5: explore Image Chef and Comic Strip Generator.
Activity 5: Create a cover sheet for any class assignment using an image generator. Include your image, your name, the teacher’s name, the date, period and the title of your assignment.
Activity 6: Write in your blog about what kinds of things you could use an image generator for in school. Then write about some ways you could use them at home or in a club [like scouts, sports team, etc]. Include a sample of your creations on your blog.
Week 5: Voice & Video
PowerPoint is not the only game in town for giving great presentations. Try these sites for interesting ideas for classroom presentations.
Thing 6: Go to Voice thread. Browse the application. Click on the ‘help’ tab to get to FAQs and tutorials. Take the tutorials to learn how to make a spectacular voice thread.
Thing 7: Then go to animoto. Click on the LEARN MORE video and learn more about how to create your own animoto.
Activity 7: Write in your blog about what kinds of things you could use animoto and voice thread for in school. Then write about some ways you could use them at home or in a club [like scouts, sports team, book club, etc]. Some ideas to consider for school: you could upload pictures of the girls working in the mills in the Industrial Revolution. Your voice thread could be explanations on what these girls experienced, where they worked, how they were treated, what it was like to work there. Or try a science project where you upload pictures of an ecosystem. Your voice thread can describe the kinds of plants, soil and animals that live there. You can include dangers to the ecosystem and provide some solutions to those dangers.
Activity 8: Using either animoto or voice thread, make a program on a science or history topic of interest. Present it in class.
Week 6: Creating documents and saving them online
Thing 8: Go to Google Docs and create your own account. While you’re there, write a poem or essay about the Internet and save it - make it easy on yourself…type in one of your existing assignments! Then link that document to one of your blog posts.
Activity 9: Write in your blog about why the online document website is useful for you – and how you can use it in school. Why would it be especially useful to have for school projects? [hint: access...and no need for USB flash drives].
Week 7: Saving and sharing your bookmarks.
Thing 9: Delicious is an online “favorites” or “bookmarks” site. This site allows you to save the websites that are useful for you - for fun, for school, for clubs or other activities. Each time you go to a great website, you can save it to your Delicious, give it a ‘tag’ [a label that helps you to identify what is on that website] so you can find it later. One way you could use it for school could be as a kind of “works cited” link.
Activity 10: choose 3 websites of interest - either for a class, or of something of interest to you - and post it on your delicious. Give them tags.
Activity 11: Blog about why delicious might be useful for:
- school
- your club, sports team, or other group
- special sites of interest to you.
Include in this blog the answer to this question: Delicious is a bookmark ’sharing’ site. Why is it useful to look at other people’s bookmarks? Be sure to include your delicious URL so others can sign on and share your bookmarks.
WEEK 8: Copyright, Intellectual Property & Information Ethics
This week is really the most important week since it discusses issues that relate to everything you do online. Therefore, this week is a BONUS week and carries extra points if you are doing this with a class. If you are doing this on your own, then it will give you BONUS points in the “I am an excellent online citizen” club.
First we will define a few words and phrases [from dictionary.com]:
Copyright: the exclusive right to make copies, license, and otherwise exploit a literary, musical, or artistic work, whether printed, audio, video, etc.: works granted such right by law on or after January 1, 1978, are protected for the lifetime of the author or creator and for a period of 50 years after his or her death.
Intellectual Property: property that results from original creative thought, such as patents, copyright material, and trademarks.
Information Ethics: is the field that investigates the ethical issues arising from the development and application of information technologies.
Thing 10. Watch this video about copyright.
Write in your blog about why it important to follow copyright laws. Answer the following: why is the creator of a piece of art interested in copyright laws? What would you feel if you saw the photograph you took for photo class on someone’s blog? Would you feel any different if they cited your work? Explain your feelings.
Activity 12. There are two excellent citation makers, Noodletools and Easybib. Try them both. Locate how to make a citation for the MLA format. Write the URL for this site on your planner or other homework helper. USE IT when you have to create a “works cited” list.
WIKI: your teacher has created a wiki for you to participate in. Your job is to add to it after you are finished [or before, if you want]. Include your great ideas to share about using any of these 2.0 tools. Did you find a new website of interest? Add it there. Didn’t find anything to like about any of these tools? Tell us why in the wiki.
CONGRATULATIONS!
You have completed Learning 2.0! Welcome to the 2.0 Team.
Your last assignment consists of blogging about your feelings and critiques of this tutorial. Please answer the following questions:
- What were your favorite discoveries or exercises on this learning journey?
- How has this program assisted or affected your lifelong learning goals?
- Were there any take-a-ways or unexpected outcomes from this program that surprised you?
- What could we do differently to improve upon this program’s format or concept?
- If we offered another discovery program like this in the future, would you choose to participate?
- How would you describe your learning experience in ONE WORD or in ONE SENTENCE, so we could use your words to promote these 2.0 learning activities?
