Zondle learning games

Check out this video by the creator of Zondle...

Zondle describes their app this way:  "Zondle allows teachers to create or set questions that students can play in over 40 games".   These games have been created with serious brain research in mind to create

the maximum learning for the fun (you can actually read the research on their website if you are so inclined).   Teachers can monitor and "grade" their students through a class management window.  

In a nutshell, this is what I've been experiencing:

The verbiage is British English so it sounds a bit weird in some places. It says, for example, "the games my teacher set for me".  It doesn't interfere with the usability once you get used to it.  In some cases, the audio recordings are really cute!  (My favorite is the chicken/egg game...)

It is primarily web-based but it does have android and iPad mobile versions with somewhat limited capability.  For example, you can create an account in the iPad app but you must go to a laptop/desktop to add content.  I think the game plays better in the app.  

The Fuzzball Fling (think Angry Birds) is my students' top choice of game.  Face Painter and Pizza Creator are their second and third faves.  Although they can be played in the web app, I think the games play better in the mobile version.  Maybe that is just a personal preference, though?

While they are described as appropriate from pre-K to Higher Education.  I think their ideal audience falls in a pretty large middle area, maybe 2nd to High School (younger students aren't independent readers, older ones can get bored easily by the games).

There is an Edmodo Zondle-users group at this link and a Google form for suggesting changes.  The creator of the game, Doug Lapsey, is available by email and also through the Zondle Edmodo page.  I had a problem with a glitch in the iPad app and got a response within hours.  

By far, my best experience with Zondle has been using the Team Play option.  The user selects the topic and it uses a set of pre-loaded questions and answers to create a gameshow-type environment.  Students can interact with the game through any smart device, they just register the device using a code.  I've tried smaller player numbers and larger and the team play option is still fun times.  The only drawback to a lot of users is that you can't see who has answered unless you scroll down-which was difficult for me on the SmartBoard (maintaining the precise orientation is always an issue).  This is still in Beta testing, so it may change some in the coming months...but I think this will be the feature I use on a regular basis.

For the shear volume of choices, Zondle is in a category alone.  And my kids are literally BEGGING to play!  Please comment if you have used this resource...my experience is only as a "Zondle Newby" (yes, that is actually how the account is labeled).  And check out my personal Zondle below...Shall we call her Frida?

                                     
UPDATE 10/22/13:  I've progressed to Zondle Guru!

The developer, Dougi, has now added embeddability to the site.  You can get an embed code that embeds a window on your website that students can log into one time, then they can use it as much as they want.  It still tracks their progress to your class...And they've added SWAG.  You can purchase stickers, temporary tattoos, keychains and even a phone cover with Zondle--they are a bit pricey but they sent me some free samples and they are quite cool.  The kids fight over them!  One of my kids is a weight lifter and he was so excited when he won a temporary tattoo that he put it on his cheek.  His lifting buddies didn't let him live it down!  There is also a place where you can add "Teacher Goodies".    Students earn "zollars" that they can use to purchase prizes entered by the teacher.  For example, you could offer  "5 minutes of Monster Mash at the end of class" for 1000 zollars--there's even a way to track which prizes you have awarded!  Very cool design!

And while I am on the topic of cool stuff--there is also functionality within Edmodo now as well.  Students don't have to log in separately, just into Edmodo, then open the Zondle app.  Wowzers!  Downside is that it costs $25-Boo!  Since their motto is "It's free.  And always will be", I have to wonder if Edmodo is charging the fee...Hmmm.

I don't use it all the time, but it is VERY engaging for kids--and is one more tool in the toolbox of activities that I rotate through.  I hope you'll try it out!

And if you want to know...Why games???  Check out this cool info-graphic about brain research and games...

Web 2.0 tools for a paperless classroom

 Click the link for the JogTheWeb Jog list...Web 2.0 tools for a paperless classroom

Recently, I was asked to share some tools for going paperless with a group of high school world language teachers, mixed languages.  Since we were using a room with desktop computers, I wanted to find similar tools to what I use every day on iPads, but in the pc/web version.  I wanted to focus on generic language tools, not content specific.  This is what I came up with...

Page One:
I started with a highlight from Google Docs.  I use it to create an answer sheet.  We complete an activity out of the textbook, for example, then I post the sentence prompts as a Google form.  This makes grading RIDICULOUSLY easy.  Every answer is the same in a column...it is glaringly obvious when there is a wrong answer.  From there it is easy to grade.

My feedback to students is decidedly low-tech. Either I meet with them individually (my preference, but difficult if class numbers are large), or I write on a scratch paper and hand it to them with the numbers of questions they got wrong.  I give them the option to resubmit.

Page Two:
I have created a Google form that students complete whenever they finish an assignment.  This is it.  It records their name and class period, the type of assignment, then a weblink to the final copy of their assignment.  Sometimes students complete work in their blog, upload to Dropbox or have handed it in on paper.  All they have to do is submit the form and I will have a list of student work links or the information about how to find it.  This has been a major time-saver for me.

Page Three:
Edmodo.  I still love thee, Edmodo.  Going beyond what Edmodo has done for my connections with students, it has done more for my connections with teachers.  Through Edmodo user groups, I've connected with thousands of teachers with ideas, links and activities!  The good folks at Edmodo really should be paying me...

Page Four:
This is a link to the list of teacher created user groups.  Click the link for your desired group and request to join.  It is very easy!  Let the sharing begin!  I just got word today that there is a new Realidades 1 group.  Contact me for info!

Page Five:
Zondle.  I've found Zondle through my work with Edmodo and I am looking forward to integrating this more.  It is a game platform for learning that has gotten some very good reviews.  I can tell you it is very easy to use!  I've only spent a small amount of time with it but I've had no trouble.  And the creators are on Edmodo and rapidly respond to any user issue!  I really like the new group-play feature currently in beta testing...it lets users join the game using the smart tool of their choice!

Page Six:
Web Whiteboard.  I use Skitch so much as I'm explaining grammar concepts or for students who can take a picture of a document or download a document and then complete it.  For this presentation, I wanted web-based tools to do similar tasks.  Web Whiteboard is what I've come up with.  It does similar work but is based on a web platform, not an iPad app.

Page Seven:
Fake Text:  If you are an aficionado of Facebook, you've already seen the results of this web application.  Essentially, you can create a small dialogue between two people and make it look like an actual text message screen.  As long as you follow a certain format, and keep it short, you will be able to see a web shot of the "text" conversation, and then you can save a copy or share it!  It isn't good for longer conversations.

Page Eight:
An excellent visual storytelling tool....Storybird.  I must be upfront here, I haven't used this.  I ran across it one day and found a couple Spanish stories.  I also asked my colleagues on Edmodo (do we sense a theme???) if anyone there had used it and several teachers responded-with both middle and high school levels-that it was actually a really cool tool.  Students use preloaded images supplied by real artists to create a "book".  The user adds the text.  I've seen it used for students creating stories using Preterite/Imperfect and for Teachers creating user-manuals for students learning how to form the imperative...Lots of potential here!

Page Nine:
Pinterest.  Kind of like Tumblr, for those of you who know that...it is a collection of user-curated images which usually link to websites, tools, recipes or blogs.  You can also "follow" others with images you like.  I started it because I am very visual and like all the pretty pictures!  I continued using it when I found the wealth of information for teachers.  Now, I must say it has kind of backfired on me...I go on it for fun and all I see are the hundreds of pins from all the educators I follow!    Boards and links are all in the public domain, so anyone can follow anyone else, if you can find them.  Users have been recently allowed to create three "secret" boards which no one else can see.  I know of teachers who create pinboards for their lesson of the day, or a certain topic, like "el Día de los Muertos" for example.  You can find a link to my Pinterest boards in the Best Links section to the right of this post.

Page Ten:
Speechyproject.org is a great blog combining language-learning and technology tools.  I've gotten lots of good ideas from them.  They have lots of examples in French and German, too.

Page Eleven:
Quizlet.  This is one of my favorites.  It is a flashcards, self-quiz, and game platform.  It is very like Quia.com but has some big things in its favor:  you can keep track of what your kids are doing, it has great tools for free that other sites make you pay for, and it does not use Java, so kids can use it on the iPads!  Another plus is that there are so many users now that I almost never have to create a study set, I just do a search for the book, level and chapter and pick from a list of options.  Once you find one you like, copy it to your own account and it becomes yours.  You can make changes, edits, etc.  I create a class and send a link to all my kids in Edmodo...then when they join for free, they are automatically linked to my account.  I can access their account info and game history.  Since they are a member of my "class", I attach a flashcard set to their class and they all get a copy of it instantly.  Two drawbacks:  you can't see the individual score for students' work and you can add photos to the vocab words but only from Flikr images (you can use your own in the upgrade edition).  Usually, there are plenty of Flikr images to chose from but sometimes the tags are weird and the exact picture you want is a bit hard to find.  Minor inconvenience.

I've heard teachers talking about Quizdini.com on Edmodo and would like to try it as well.  I think it does similar things.

I hope you enjoy and are able to glean something to use from this list.  One of the participants at my presentation said he enjoyed the student turn-in form on Google Docs and  my "evangelical statements" about Edmodo.  *big smile*

Qikshare, Dragon Dictiation and I'm a real blogger now...

I'm not sure when I started feeling this way exactly, but I noticed it just a week or two ago...when my last post hits exceeded the number my friends and family could account for, maybe...but I think I am considering myself a blogger.  It brings to mind that commercial from the 90's when a kid is pulling up his diaper underpants and singing "I'm a big kid now".  I'm a blogger now.  Go on, you know you are singing it in your head...

So I got excited yesterday when I tried something new.  Or two somethings, to be specific.  And since I'm a blogger *wink, wink*, I immediately began composing a post in my head.  Here it is:

Dragon Dictation.  In iPad education, this is not really a new app.  I've read about others using it, but I guess what surprised me--and what I wanted to share with you--was the strength of the interaction and engagement created by this app.   We set the language setting to "español américas" and then we practiced our vocab words.  Simple, right?  Well, what we got was a really interactive and engaging, not to mention FUN, practice time where EVERY student received IMMEDIATE feedback on their pronunciation.  They speak their words into the mic then ask it to process.  It prints out what it thinks it heard, then kids have to reflect on what they did to produce that written response and how they can make it better or change to receive a different response.  Very high level thinking required!  Sometimes the responses are so ludicrous you can't help but laugh...but the process of practicing a word several times can be very rewarding when they finally get it to type the right word...immediate gratification!  They practice a couple more times for extra reinforcement, then move on to the next word on the list.  I have them keep all the mistakes and then the corrections on one screen and then take a screenshot.  Each student posted his or her screenshot on their class blog, then made a few comments about what was difficult for them and what was surprising, or easy, etc.  I will definitely be making this a regular activity!

The second cool thing we did was use this app...Qikshare lite.  

Students were composing crazy class rules...like "hay que comer la mochila"(You must eat your bookbag), in PicCollage.  In the paper form, I used to have students hang their responses on the wall and then we would vote on the best crazy rules using sticky notes.  (Each student received one sticky note, then they posted their vote on the best rule).  My challenge was to have students share their info and then vote in electronic format.  I wanted something like Bump that shared information via bluetooth and what I found was even better!  This is actually a form of Bump (they are quick to say they are not a replacement for it!) but it uses Dropbox, which my students are already very familiar with.  So students save to Dropbox, then open this app and select the file and Bump it!  They had a great time bumping and sharing info.  Some got a little carried away bumping and forgot to actually look at the file, but other than that--perfect!  

This is exactly what I want my class to be about...using the iPads to improve upon best practices to create an engaging (and fun!) environment for learning!    Yay for iPads!  And Blogging!  And apps!  Ok, I'll stop now.  But you get the idea.  *smile*

JPG to PDF

So I have a scanner.  It was a hand-me-down.  I am grateful to have it, but for some reason it won't allow me to scan anything to PDF.  The option is available, but it won't do it.  Unfortunately, for some programs like Notability to work, the document must be a PDF.  This presents a small problem.  :)

Talking with some other teachers during a workshop, one demonstrated her use of a simple point and shoot app that instantly converts to PDF.  I can't remember what app she was talking about, but I went on a hunt today to find one.

This is what I found in order of preference...(free version for all)

My Scans:

This was a bit disappointing.  It is basic enough to understand and manipulate without too much hassle, but don't try to do anything except save to the iPad...if you email it, there is a HUGE watermark that renders the document practically useless...And I don't like the idea of someone putting their name on my work.  Grr.

Scan to PDF:

This works fine.  You can easily upload pictures and change them to pdf files.  Can't really do much other than save them to the computer or email them, though.

FasterScan HD:

This is a much more visually stimulating app.  There are a TON more choices about where to get the jpg and what to do with it, including opening it in certain apps and faxing it!  It is also much sleeker and sexier.  This is the app I ultimately chose to work with.  I highly recommend it!

For those of you interested in the process, these are my steps:
1. scan document, save to my computer.
2. email document to myself and open on iPad (I could take a pic of it but they usually are not as good)
3. save attachment to photo stream
4. open app, get photo from photo stream and convert
5. send back to email
6. open on desktop and save to my documents

I have dropbox and frequently use this at home, but the computer at work that has the scanner won't open dropbox.. :( so I have to email it to myself.  Please let me know if anyone has suggestions for how to improve this process!

This is an awesome graphic about conversational skills and apps/websites that are needed for different aspects of language.