Voki.com

Voki.com is an easy way to create avatars for presenting information to your students. Students can also create their own avatars for projects.

• Create an avatar based on an historical figure. Dialogue a conversation describing their contribution to society.
• Create an avatar for Gregor Mendel. Have him describe his pea plant experiments.
• Check out an avatar I created to introduce an activity on edmodo.

The Jason Mission

The Jason Mission is a site offering online gaming, lesson plans, live events, and digital labs. It gives teachers access to create their own assignments, observe the students progress and keeps track of assessments.

• Resilient Planet- This is a downloadabe game inviting students to explore a new environment and its biodiversity. The student can conduct a mission to rescue endangered species. It introduces the terms food web, carnivor and niche.


• The Invaders - a mini game investigating the role of invasive species and their effect on the environment. It introduces the concepts of predator/prey, adaptations, and competition.


• Monster Storm Tracker - The student steps into the role of a weather forecaster. They are responsible for predicting where and when the storm will hit. They also predict how strong the storm will be.

Xtranormal.com

This is a great website for students to use to create conversations or to present information. Students create a video using the scenes and actors provided. They provide the dialogue and can even choose camera direction, actors facial expression, and their movements. Unfortunately, there is some cost. A teacher pays ten dollars a month and the students 50 cents. This provides them with lots of options and the ability to publish there finished product to youtube, facebook or twitter.
Think of the implicatons:

• Students could create a discussion between a genetic counselor and a couple.



• An interview with a famous scientist



• A debate about stem cell research



• A reporter reporting on water pollution.

Check at the website to view a movie I did for a graduate class. I did it in an hour.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=am55yW7RSD0

In the beginning...

As a teacher, I am always thrilled to find new and exciting ways to teach my content. Unfortunately, many of us don't have the time to search the internet looking for it. Hopefully, this blog will provide a forum where we can share the ideas we have found and how we are using them. Working together we can do so much more.