Lemon Tech Tidbits

KAPWING: A web-based video editing suite. One of my favorite video creation sites I have enjoyed is WeVideo . This is especially true since we recently started to use Chromebooks and I needed an alternative to iMovie. However, WeVideo can be pricey if you want all of the bells and whistles that make it such a great application. At the KASL workshop in Topeka a few Saturday’s ago, Martha Holmes shared an article about Kapwing from School Library Journal written by Joyce Valenza. So I decided to give it a try. Kapwing lets you do many things beyond a simple video. You can create meme’s, gifs, loop video and even create a stop-motion animation. In addition, you can add subtitles to video, make a montage or collage, and resize or trim videos. To create something, it usually only takes a few steps using images and video already on your computer. It is so easy! Kapwing is free to use, requires no sign in, and can be used on multiple devices such as iPads, Chromebooks, MacBooks and more...

GREENSCREENS: How to use Green Screens in your videos. Below are a few hints on using Green Screens in your classroom: Go to Dollar Tree or Dollar General and purchase some green table covers for @ $1.00 each to use as an easy and inexpensive screen.  Make sure there are no wrinkles or shadows on the green screen as it makes things better when editing. Green screens do not always have to be against a wall, lay them down on the floor. Have students lay on top and record from a birds-eye view. Create a Green Screen Movie Maker: Have kids use a pizza box covered in green paper. Have them wear green gloves and green colored popsicle sticks to “move” objects around.  If you don’t have any green around, use blue! It works just as well. Green Screen apps: WeVideo for Chromebooks and DoInk and iMovie for iPads. 5 Quick Projects That Makes Use of a Green Screen .

INSERT LEARNING: Insert Instructional Content On Any Page InsertLearning was developed by two teachers as a way to create richer learning experiences for their students. It is a Chrome Extension that allows you to turn an average website into an interactive lesson. With this extension, you can easily highlight sections of text, add questions, insert sticky notes with links and videos, and create a discussion. Once you have added in these touches, you can easily assign the site that is now a lesson to your students as it is integrated with Google Classroom. You can even share the lesson with other teachers. This is an extension with a free and paid version. The free version allows you to create and share only five lessons. The teacher edition is $40.00 a year and lets you create an unlimited number of lessons. There is also a school-wide or district license. Watch this short video to learn more: https://goo.gl/gr5qQF

ClassroomScreen Many of us have a projector and screen in our classroom that we use every single day. In fact, it is hard to imagine teaching without one. We do many things with our projectors including displaying the day's announcements, opening bell work, and so much more. Now imagine if there was an easy to use website that was custom made just for classroom use. Well, that is where ClassroomScreen comes in. To get started, you simply need to go to ClassroomScreen and click on the widgets located at the bottom. All widgets were designed for a classroom setting on a beautiful background of your choice. There is not an ability to save what is projected from day to day but it has been designed that it shouldn’t take more than 30 seconds to get started. Watch this short video to learn more: https://goo.gl/GHbXLq

STORYWEAVER Do you wish for a place where children can read stories created by other children? Do you wish for a place where children can create and publish their own story? Than Storyweaver is the website for you! Storyweaver is an open source (ie free!) website that was created as a place for children to weave together the power of stories. “It is a place where students can create, read, translate, and download an endless stream of stories.” To see how to create your own story, watch this very short youtube tutorial: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LDPyK_sOiv8 Other digital storytelling tools include Storywars , Storybird , Toontastic , and Bookcreator .

CREATING A PODCAST If you have not heard yet, Podcast are the next big thing in the Education World. Not only are there many articles listing the best Podcast to incorporate into lessons, there are many articles about how and why students should create one themselves. In the latest blog post by Richard Byrne, he talks about a new and improved site called Anchor.fm . This site is free to use and pretty easy to get the hang of. It lets you record a podcast in an easy to use format and then share it on the major podcast platforms with one click. In addition, you can combine recordings or segments into one without having to do any major editing. To see how it works, go to the Free Technology for Teachers blog and watch the video created by Richard Byrne titled How To Create A Podcast In Six Minutes Or Less: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8NfKlcP_Yxg

DUBIOUS STATISTICS Every year in my high school tech class, we spend a great deal of time learning about Fake News and how to detect it. There are many different units we cover such as how to evaluate the sources, recognize the use of satire, understand bias and debunk deceptive statistics. Getting ready for this unit, I came across this blog post by Tim Stahmer over a BBC podcast over a debunking guide in the size of a postcard. If you are short on time can don’t want to listen to the podcast, here is a list of the advice (but you should really listen to the podcast, it’s less than 11 minutes): Remember confirmation bias - how you feel about a statistic is important. Understanding the claim - know what you are not being told in the statistic. Get the backstory - who is responsible for the statistic. Put things into perspective - things may sound better or worse than they are. Embrace imprecision - there are many things that cannot be precisely depicted. Be Curious - if a...