Thing 20: Explore YouTube and TeacherTube

YouTube

I GET FIRED UP!

I like motivational messages. They really get me fired up. Here is a short, yet sweet one.




I like to learn new things!

This is how I learned, and had fun, making a Diaper Cake.




TeacherTube

I created this one!

Please forgive me if I am not humble here. This is my first Teacher Tube video that I have submitted and I am feeling really good about having created it.
I will be using this to introduce the Texas Bluebonnet Nominees for 2009-2010 in conjunction with my kids-book-club wiki.



The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
Click the above link to hear Suzanne reading an excerpt from chapter 11.


I pulled this clip from Scholastic's web site. I really liked this YA novel and am looking forward to the sequel which will be out September 1st. If you liked the Twilight Saga, you will find The Hunger Games fascinating.



And here is a YouTube video book report someone else created. This is one of the type of projects-video book talks-that I have planned for the upcoming school year.

Thing 16: I am a Wiki Freak

I am all into Wiki and subscribe to the free and ad-free educational wikis from wikispaces. They are incredibly easy to set up and manipulate. Wikispaces often offers free webinars in real time so you can ask and receive answers from its moderators. They have video tutorials that show step by step methods of creating wikis. The most recent webinar was a cultural education exchange webinar in which an American school collaborated with a school in Hati on a wiki. It was amazing-the learning and sharing that was taking place.

I first used wikispaces a year ago as a way to present at the ME(2) by the SEa Mathematics and Science Conference. I introduced useful mathematics web sites and online games that could serve to help strengthen students math skills by engaging them in fun, but helpful practice. My new wiki is now under construction-a Kids Book Club that I will be using to promoting book discussions, book clubs, book trailers, and book voting.

Wikis are so easy and the possibilities for their uses are practically endless. I am a such a wikifan.

Book Trailers for Bluebonnets

Today I am creating a book trailer to introduce my students to the 2009-2010 Texas Bluebonnet Nominees. When searching for book jacket images I came across a Blog devoted to the Bluebonnet awards. I hope we can compare notes. This is our first year for Bluebonnet voting. I hope our kids will be as excited about it as I am. If I finish the trailer soon, I will post it to my Book Egg Blog.