Thing #11

I didn't know you could create your own maps like this! And Add pictures and video clips ta boot. I knew you could do that with Google Earth but that is a program you put on your computer. This online option is nice! Easy to link in an email, or put up on a website. I did one here to teach about Jazz history. Each marker highlights a new development in jazz styles and lists some major players of that style.


View Where did Jazz develop? in a larger map

I can see doing one that shows parts of the Erie Canal that used to run through NY. I do that song in upper elementary and usually talk geography for a bit as an introduction to the song. I spend some time drawing on the whiteboard a map of NY state to show where it was and to show why it was useful. How neat would it be to be able to put up the map on the whiteboard and use the markers to guide the presentation! I could even add pictures of the Erie canal village that keeps a small stretch of the canal operational. I'll have to do that for next year.

Thing #10

Google Reader is pretty cool. This too takes time to look at and read BUT you can tailor the info you are looking at and it is in one place. It feels a little like facebook. I can get bogged down with reading every ones posts and checking out others profiles etc. It's a big time sucker. Google reader can offer reading with a focused agenda. I can see using Google Reader if I can find sites that are relevant to me at a particular time for either personal or professional reasons. It is easy enough to change what you are getting so it isn't too overwhelming. Add a site or take a site off depending on what you need to know about. I have often thought about using a site like this so now I know how to do it! We'll see how it goes actually trying to use the reader effectively.

One idea for students is to set up a blog for the class, and then get teachers in other parts of the district, state or country to set up class blogs. (actually, many will already have them) Then google reader could link to them all allowing your class to follow other students in the larger larger musical community. Hmmmm. My gears are turning...

Here is a video I found on School tube. I like the look of this site better than teacher tube. Great inspiration this Andy Mackie whose foundation builds stringed instruments with kids in schools.

Thing #9

I was already a member of Ning. I started a group for elementary music where I tried out some embedding skills to add content my colleagues might be able to use. I posted a blog post looking for ideas from fellow music teachers. I want to try and develop some Easy Teach lessons for music instruction at the elementary level.

I also invited a few colleagues as no one else had signed up!

Thing #8

This has been one piece of technology that I used a lot in my elementary music classes. I used You Tube videos of kids singing the song we were learning to give them good examples. I found karaoke versions of our songs to get back up tracks and used them on the music program. They were easy to line up and bookmark. I did run into a concern that other things on the you-tube page may not be the best to show in a classroom. I had the best experience with embedding the video on my web page...no junk advertising. That said, I did have one video post that had a questionable google ad across the bottom of the embedded video upon its completion! I believe the content is an indispensable resource BUT you have to really investigate what you get there.

Teacher tube also has the same potential. I found videos of school concerts giving me cool ideas. If there is a particularly good performance I would definitely consider showing it to my students. The more they hear kids singing the better they will be able to produce the right sound. Here is one I found. I liked the instruments and arrangement though the singing sound could be better. http://www.teachertube.com/viewVideo.php?video_id=23235

I'd like to investigate what else is on this site. With Photos, audio, docs, etc. There has to be a wealth of ideas and cool things to share. I think Pam Bird said it right there is a lot of junk to wade through so your search has to be focused.

Thing #7

Wow, I now get what a wiki is. I never really got how it was different from a regular webpage. I know there was a collaborative element to them but didn't understand how it functioned. Now I do. The one scary for the control freak part of me is that anyone in the group can change the content. Rules of engagement and trust are crucial elements to a group of editors. Monitoring a wiki seems like it can take lots of time. Especially if it gets really big. I can't imagine the team of editors on the Wikipedia project!

I visited a few and like the general and simple layout of a wiki. "Online Resources for the Classroom" was easy to navigate and I even tried the editing option. It was very easy to add an entry and make a link to the site referenced. What a cool way to learn from everybody in a group. The site was totally open and available to edit by anyone.

The site "Let's Go West" however was not open to editing. The Third graders at this school were the co-authors. Though it can be seen by all, only those with permission can change/ add content. I like the flexibility this affords. That control freak part of me is calmed a bit knowing you can limit contributors to any number you like. looking at the content pages, it felt like someone's long term project (one done on poster board with an accompanying report encased in a clear plastic cover)looking at all the entries with text, graphics, and pictures.

There is a lot yet to learn though. I visited wiki devoted to collecting all the info known about Duran Duran. (it looked like fun). This was a little less streamlined and was covered in advertising. I didn't like the menu layout very well. It was hard to know the organization of information. I tried to edit a page and the text was more like HTML than the simpler text editor on the first site I mentioned. Perhaps I wasn't clicking on the right things.

One other site visited was a colleague who made it her music classroom site.It is great. She included demo videos, audio recordings of kids, links to voice threads, and pdf document downloads. I don't think she had any co-editors set up but used it more like a regular website. It is an attractive platform for that use.

Thing #6

I have really enjoyed looking at these presentation applications. I was excited to see there is an online software akin to Microsoft's Powerpoint. It seems to do most of the things the other does. I was initially disappointed by the lack of audio and video support, I learned you can insert HTML code into pages. This opens up the option to insert embedding code of audio and video players to play your files that are stored on You-tube or screencast.com. I like that you can share a presentation remotely with participants logged into the integrated chat window. I don't see how it would be useful or even doable with elementary students but perhaps with staff. I can see working with elementary music staff on a day when getting together is impossible but could arrange a meeting if every one stays at their home buildings...no travel time.

I looked at animoto but didn't get really excited about it. Very cool slide show effects and presentations but not sure I can use it day to day to support curriculum in music. If anyone else sees any possibilities I am all ears.

My Favorite by far is Prezi. Very cool presentations! I like the zooming around, options for pictures, video and links. I am a big fan of brainstorming webs where you can bounce around and get all your thoughts out in the open. Prezi allows me to work up a presentation a little at a time, here and there developing as I go. It seems to match my work style. It is extremely easy to create and manipulate elements on the page. Here is a Prezi I created in the professional development vein. Or below in the same Prezi embedded in the post.

technology integration on Prezi

Thing #5

The more I look at Google Docs the more I like it. After watching the videos Brooke posted I see more possibilities and benefits. I could use this with my music colleagues to draft documents, work on curriculum documents, and share documents I have come up with for use in my schools. They can easily edit and save as their own version for their schools. Here is a sample schedule I made that other staff in the building can access to build the music schedule.




I do see forms as a really useful tool in assessing kids or gaining information from kids. I can see using this with staff to gather info about the district for big picture planning as the above form demonstrates.

Google Docs can only replace office if there is a consistent and reliable access to the internet everywhere. In order to use it you'll have to be at a network, in a wireless zone or have 3G access through cell towers. If that were a given I think it could take over if the software was as feature rich and if enough people trusted Google to keep their stuff safe and secure.

Thing #4

Here is the link to my first voicethread. http://voicethread.com/share/1032169/

I see this as having lots of possibilities for student interaction. It's not face to face but more like an improved message board. You can hear someone's voice which conveys so much more than just text. I like that you can comment by voice, video, and draw on the scren as you explain your comment or initial voice thread narration. I can see posting a picture of a staff and having students draw notes on it to show what they know about rhythms or tonal patterns. Each student could go and comment each demonstrating what they know. Colleagues could comment on music program videos and give suggestions or ask questions or just give encouragement!

Here is my second voice thread. I was having fun here so I was myself and a few others who decided to comment on the voice thread in different ways.
http://voicethread.com/share/1032246/
This could be shared with other music teachers via my website or emailing them the link. They could view the content and then start the conversation.
I discovered how to embed a voice thread. Here it is. I think you can add a comment directly in this embedded voice thread.


I found this voicethread on a music teacher's website for her recorder players. She posted dorectons and a tune for the kids to play for a playing test. They log in and play the song for the teacher to grade. I want to do this next year.
http://voicethread.com/#q.b309107.i1651621
She also has one for kids to sing a new endings to a song she sang the start of on the voice thread.

I think I have done something like podcasting. I have posted audio clips of my students making music. Parents and students can comment on the blog post containing the clips so seems like a simple sort of podcast. Check out mrconniff.com. Click on the link in my bloglist to the left labeled Music Education Mr. Conniff Music and scroll down the blog page to find the audio clips.

Thing #3 continued

IMG_2045
Originally uploaded by conniffmusic

Here is a photo on I uploaded to my new flickr account. It seems you can't embed the photos like you can from Picasa web albums. There is no embed code to copy and paste into a blog post/ page. You can post to your blog from inside flickr. You need grant flickr access to your blog with a few click that are pretty easy to follow. One downside to flickr might be storage limitations unless you upgrade. I need to check this out more. This seems to be a good place to house pics. Has the standard editing tools (you can also house video here too).


I take it back! Once I made my photo public...anyone can see it...I was able to grab the HTML code to post in a blog without going through flickr. The new downside is that you can't have a private photo that is then posted to a website. Not good for student pics!Free account limit: 100MB worth of pics per MONTH and two 90sec videos per MONTH. Otherwise $25 per year. hmmmmmm.

Flickr

This is a test post from , a fancy photo sharing thing.

Thing #3

        We have used Picasa for a few years now and really like it. I just recently uploaded to picasa web albums to try it out. I haven't really used it for much of anything but I might start. All my pictures are on my computer at home and picasa offers an easy way to get them uploaded. You can have private or public albums which is good for privacy issues with school websites. You can have student pics in a private web album that is then linked to a password protected or invite only section of the site. That will have to be my solution for my website that hopes to service my elementary music class population that totals near 800. The editor Picasa offers is pretty good. Crop, color and white balance adjustment, red eye removal and resizing for emailing and posting are key features.

        A few years back we set up a photo bucket account to share pics with family. We didn't end up using it very much and kinda forgot it was there. Upon researching for thing 3, I visited photobucket again and resurrected my account. I was impressed with the set of editing tools they now have or have expaned (didn't use 'em last go round)It had all the features you could want. There was also a "save as copy" so you can retain originals. this is especially nice for cropping for specific purposes but still want the original for other things. Here is an embedded picasa web album slide show. I used a bunch of pictures of a recent woodworking project.

Thing #1

           OK, so my first impression was how easy it was to actually get going on a blog. When I looked around at other blogs to see what they had set up they seemed so complicated. The basic functioning blog was really not too hard. The dash board was pretty easy to navigate and figure out. I also talked to my sister-in-law who has maintained a blog for a few years to find out how some of the features worked; I had wondered about tags, categories, blog rolls, and how the older posts were archived for later viewing.

            I wanted to try this blog thing but I also wanted it to be about something worth while. I saw several blogs that were not very interesting and others that really caught my eye on topics that resonated with me. About this time, Kentwood admin was talking to the essential arts teachers about program visibility in the community. It struck me that a blog would suit this visibility and communication goal for my elementary music program!

            I began talking to those who I knew that had websites and blogs to see where they hosted their sites and how much they cost or what you got for free. These were teachers at Discovery who were starting sites on shutterfly. This site is designed for photo sharing and so the teacher pages are really geared for picture media. I knew I wanted to be able to post video and audio as key elements. Others I talked to were Brooke Storm and got some more information as well as My brother in law who I found out hosts websites and has wordpress intalled on his server.

            I ultimately went with my Brother-in-law for the personal support and the fact that he offered his services at the family rate...free. I use word press to build and manage the blog. I learned about plug-ins that add features to the site. Specifically, I had an audio player installed and will shortly have a video player installed. Audio and video files stored in the media folder can be linked to the plug-ins so they show up in the post as a playable/ viewable object.

            I have gotten great feed back from people regarding the blog I created (mrconniff.com) and finding it really a useful and convenient way to provide resources to my students and parents. Many kids have already told me how they went to the website to check out the links and videos embedded there. So far, so good. I am really enjoying putting it together!


         



     

Thing #2

I was introduced to Delicious by a Southwood teacher who was taking a class in web 2.0 tools. It came at a time when I was getting frustrated with my technology. As a music teacher I had been using You-Tube videos of songs to teach them to my students. I teach in two buildings and was searching for videos and other content at home. I started bookmarking the links in my computer's browser after getting tired of going to you-tube and searching for the video every time I needed to use it. However, I found that I wasn't consistent in having all the videos bookmarked on each school's computer and got caught a few times having to stall class while I searched the video on you-tube! Then comes the introduction to Delicious. When I learned how social bookmarking worked, it was like Christmas all over again. This was precisely what I needed to keep everything at my fingertips.

I have used it for bookmarking those song videos I used to teach the songs with, collecting links to videos of good singing examples, as well as links to kid music sites I later included on my website.

I also have a tag category for all the Kentwood related sites like gradebook, online email, KALPA and NING. No more hunting for the address on google or the KPS website. Very convenient! I use it every day!

Here is my link...
http://delicious.com/conniffpeter

Thing #8 (related)

Here is an embedded mpeg4 video stored on screencast.com. I like that this player loads quickly and plays right away. It is perfectly sized to fit in a blog post.





I was watching the great clip of Sir Robinson where he talked about creativity! I've seen this one many times and he has a quote in there that applies to this project. He said, "If you're not prepared to be wrong, you'll never come up with anything original." I like to finish that with "you'll never get better at anything". So, click away!