SMARTNotebook

This is the software that comes with the interactive whiteboard from Smart Technologies. This is a very useful, interesting and interactive tool.The teacher can do a lot more things on the board and make the lesson more interesting, interactive and exciting.

Here is the link about how to use the SMARTNotebook provided by Russell Stannard.

http://www.teachertrainingvideos.com/e-portfolios-iwbs/interactive-whiteboards.html


It will be surprising to see how many activities this tool makes accessible and realisable. This also provides teachers with opportunities to get students involved physically as well, which might help enhance language learning acquisition. The teacher can use the properties or images that are already installed or even add new things according to their needs.

As this is "interactive", it reacts to our action. We can move letters on the board, make them bigger or smaller. It is easy to write, put coulours, add some shapes or erase them. With the help of sounds, images or videos, this can provide an authentic context for language learning.

The biggest problem, I think, is all about facilities, whether the school/institution has rooms equipped to use SMARTNotebook in the classroom. As far as I know, it is quite impossible to have each room equipped. The teacher needs to carry a laptop, a projector and an interactive whiteboard and set them up before the class begins. It takes more than 5 minutes to be ready while there is only 10-minute break between classes. Furthermore, it is also unlikely that there is enough interactive whiteboards for each teacher to use.

Teacher training is another issue for this tool to be pervasive.

As for the target learners, I think this is more suitable for young learners than for elder learners when it is used to encourage them to interact or move their bodies.

Regarding the use of this, it will be likely that the teacher will tend to speak a lot as s/he is supposed to give instructions. However, it would be better if the teacher could invite students speak, express themselves in the target language.

Jing

Jing is a tool which allows you to capture a image or a video and to add your voice instruction over it. You need to download it but it's free of charge.

This is useful when you want to show Internet pages, videos or any documents with your voice guidance. Unlike my brainshark, it doesn't allow you to put your voice instruction slide by slide or page by page, but once you select the area you would like to capture, you can go any pages or sites. It keeps recording the pages and your voice unless you stop recording.

I tried capturing a Youtube video and adding my voice over it. Below is one of the famous scenes from Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens.

I recorded my voice over this video using Jing. Once I finish recording, Jing sends me a link of the page where the the video with my voice is found.

http://screencast.com/t/dO1BdtLe

I can send this link to whoever I would like to share with the video.

I should know more about how Jing works and what it can do. I think it would be better it could allow us to see the original video and the video with our voice. Or maybe any possibilities to embed the voice-added-video on Blogger??


Here is the link to Jing.

http://www.techsmith.com/jing.html

This is the link to the training video provided by Russell Stannard.

http://www.teachertrainingvideos.com/screen-casting/jing.html

Triptico

Triptico is a tool that teachers can use to make the lesson more game-like one. It is designed and created by David Riley.

Triptico could be suitable for a wide range of age groups, levels, as well as subjects. The teachers can make the questions easy or difficult depending on the their needs or according to the interest or levels of their students. Not only language teachers but also any teachers of any subjects can make good use of this tool.

The teacher can ask a student to answer the questions in front of the class. Also, s/he can project the materials on the screen and invite the whole class to answer the questions.

The teacher should take the learners' age, levels or even genders into consideration. I find it useful when it is used as a warming-up activity as it provides learners with quick activities. I assume it can gain students' attention very easily, however, the excessive use can make learners bored or make them think that it is useless especially when the learners are older than 15/16 years old or when they consider entrance examinations for high ranked universities. Also, the older girls become, the less interested they become in this game-like activity (of course it always depends on the learner groups).

Downloading is free. Once you download it, you can choose activities from the menu screen. It can make funny sounds when they get a right/wrong answer.

You can also choose your favourite TIMERS or SELECTORS.

Here is what I have made using "What's the Question?". This activity helps learners to build the question by looking at the answer. The teacher are invited to make groups.

It took more time to think about 12 questions than I expected. One reason for this is that I didn't have a clear image of the learners. It will be important to include questions which can help students to remember what they have leanrt as well as questions which will be helpful for their following learning. The teacher also should be aware of the interest of the learners.


Here is the link to Triptico.

http://www.triptico.co.uk/home

Embedding Youtube videos on Blogger

There are a lot of interesting and motivating videos on Youtube. You can embed videos on Blogger. This allows you to invite your learners to your blog page and provide them with an equal opportunity to look at what you would like to show them.

Of course you can create your own videos or lecture sites with different tools, however, sometimes it is simple and helpful to introduce already made videos.

Embedding Youtube videos is very easy.

On Compose page, click "Insert a video"and choose "From Youtube" and type key words. That will bring you the video you are looking for. Just click on the video you would like to upload and press "Select".

I tried with a trailer of Les Miserables-The Musical, as this is my favourite musical. The novel is also great by the way...

Here is the video from Youtube.

It is always problematic that learners, especially the young or teenagers, will be exposed to inappropriate videos or contents on Youtube. It would be better if students as well as parents could have opportunities to know about the dangers/traps of the Internet.

My brainshark

My brainshark allows you to upload Powerpoint slides or Word documents or even make podcasts. It's free for signing up and basically it's free of charge. You can add your voice instruction to help your learners to follow your lectures/presentations. The students can also record their voice and listen to their recordings. It can serve to listening, speaking, and would be useful for writing and reading as well.

It allows you to make comments on each slides. It's easy to edit once you understand how it works.

The audience can leave comments, which encourages interaction between the producer and the audience.

Although this is a great tool, as is often the case with other tools, the teacher should spend quite long time preparing the materials and giving feedback to the students.


Here is a powerpoint document I made just to see how my brainshark works. The content is rubbish and my English is rubbish, very embarrassing, but I could somehow manage to make slides with audio guidance. Please be nice and kind if you listen to it!!!


 



Here is the link to my brainshark.

http://www.brainshark.com/mybrainshark


This is the instruction given by Russell Stannard. He can tell you how to use this step by step.

http://www.teachertrainingvideos.com/video-youtube/mybrainshark-part-1.html

http://www.teachertrainingvideos.com/video-youtube/mybrainshark-part-2.html

Voki

Voki is a free online language learning/teaching tool (*not fully free). This allows you and your learners to make your own avatar easily. Even novice user of technologies like me have no difficulties to get started. Your avatar can speak, can move its eye glance. The teacher can create a Voki Classroom, upload voice messages, and interact with the learners.

This is especially suitable for young learners but could interest all age groups. As the majority of children today are supposed to play video games, Voki would be a good opportunity to get their attention.

Although creating his/her own avatar is fun and attractive, managing online classrooms requires a lot of work to the teacher, and keeping the learners' attention would be another one.

Here is my first avatar. Some options are not open to those who are not signed in for VOKI CLASSROOM or VOKI PRESENTATER.



Here is the link to Voki.

http://www.voki.com/

Here is the training video provided by Russell Stannard, who is teaching us about the use of ICT in language classrooms.

http://www.teachertrainingvideos.com/audio-podcasting/voki.html

More about fluency

About Fluency

Being fluent in target languages is one of the major objectives of language learners.


Here is a blog link that a friend of mine recommends.

Fluent in three months

http://www.fluentin3months.com/blog-home/


This is written and organised by Benny Lewis, an Irish polyglot.


He provides us with several approaches to be competent at any language.


You can hear from people who succeeded in speaking foreign languages.


You can also join the Forum and have discussions with people from all over the world, which might inspire you more to language learning.