Monday Models - Podcasting

Last night I was finally able to make one of the Monday Models classes at the ESC on podcasting. We covered the basics, what a podcast is, where you can subscribe to them, how they would be useful in the classroom, how to record using either sound recorder or Audacity.

I recently used Audacity to create an audio book of Slop Goes the Soup and it was a wonderful success. Students replaced the onomatopoeia with sound effects that I had downloaded from the web. It was a really cool project, and I hope to help other teachers record sound for other purposes (original student work, summaries, etc.)

I did realize that since the last time that I did a sweep of iTunes for Education podcasts (and found such treasures as Grammar Girl) there has been a glut of new contributers. I am especially excited to listen to some of technology-related ones, like a podcast I spotted all about ways to use SmartBoards. Awesome!

Logo a GoGo

It's really amazing to me how many wonderful open source programs are out there, but I was expecially pleased when I found a newer version of Logo. This is one of the only programs that we worked on in the lab (excluding Oregon Trail of course) when I was in school. I downloaded and installed it in the lab, and can't wait to try it out again. I just have to reteach myself quickly. I wish I had one of those robotic turtles that some schools used to have.

Today was the Last day of my early bird technology class. We had a great time creating webpages, 3D models, images, and even computer games! Next semester I am going to focus more on the process of game creation, from storyboarding to "if - then" statements. Students will have to work very hard because the information is difficult, but the end results will be fabulous.