The use of iPads as an educational tool. María and Laura posting and learning

The use of iPads and tablets as an educational tool is nowadays one of the emerging trends in society. Therefore, in the last Master’s Degree ICT class we were introduced to the use of this very sophisticated technology in schools. Maribel Benito, one of our ICT teachers, was the one leading this task.

First, she lectured us about the proper use of this resource and showed us how they use iPads in Jesuïtes Bellvitge, the school where she works. From what she showed, it looks like her school has a very carefully developed approach towards the use of technologies in the class. For instance, to deal with iPads and technologies, the school has created within its ICT program the role of technology leaders. These leaders are chosen and trained to help their classmates and teachers. They are several in each class and they are chosen among the students that are good with technologies. In regard to iPads, she told us that the real potential of this tool lies in the fact that children can easily create and share their own personalize learning materials and projects.

After this short lecture, we had the chance to explore the iPads and use them as if we were children. To do so, we used two apps, Book Creator and Bitsboard. 

With BookCreator we created a short story with photos, video, and audio. We must say that when we run out of time it was hard to stop working. It was then when we realized how powerful, engaging and motivating this tool and apps are. If you wish you can check out our creation.

With Bitsboard, we first created a series of flashcards and then some games. We found this app amazingly useful because the teacher and the students can easily create personalized flashcards with image, audio and written word. Then, ones you have the flashcards the app creates a wide range of games to work on this language.

Charter of Games

Unscramble

Wordsearch

Odd one out

Related to the application of these tool in the school, we thought that Book Creator could be used to create all sorts of stories. For instance, students could create stories for different moments of the year, like Christmas, Halloween, and Easter. Or could they do short narrations around different topics like, for example, "the story of their lives", "their holidays", "an innovative cooking recipe", or the "step by step documentation of a class project". We also thought that this tool could be used to work on the stories presented in the class. For instances, taken the story of The very hungry Caterpillar students could create their own version or make their own summary with pictures, screenshots, videos and audios of themselves while performing or even drawing the story. In this way, the story will be worked in depth and the students will have a repertory of personalize materials related to the story.

Moreover, Bitsboard could be used in the classroom, as mentioned above, to create personalized flashcards and work on language in a more meaningful way. We would do this by encouraging the class to take pictures and create their own flashcards. We also thought that we could use the games generated by this app to work in different Study Areas or to deal with fast finishers (those children that always finish earlier than the others).

Therefore, Book Creator easily prompts HOTS (High Order Thinking Skills) activities in which students can create, evaluate and analyze. And Bitsboard is an amazing tool for working on LOTS (Low Order Thinking Skills) like remembering, understanding and applying.

The list of our apps on a QR code!!

Use your QR Camara and get the list on your iPad or phone.

iPad as an ICT tool

Hello girls!

We are Alba and Georgina sharing our experience of the last session, using the iPads as technological tool in the classroom. Both of us have our own iPads and we have used them for leisure. But after the last session our mind has been opened and we now see the iPad as a good and useful ICT tool.  

BOOK CREATOR

We really consider that Ipads bring education to life in the classrooms. It is a tool very easy to manipulate and children can use it easily. We all know that new technologies make the sessions more engaging than a printed format beside the incontable number of tools you can take benefit from. Sharing resources, working in groups, communication, access to different cultures… are some of the advantages of using ipads in the classroom.

Thanks to Maribel Benito we were introduced in how to use ipads in classrooms with students from Nursery and Primary School. The first App she shared with us was “BOOK CREATOR”.

This educational app is ideal for children to create a personalised story related to any topic. The app allows students to take a picture and add it, videos, images and icons, text, change the background and change the colour. Students can see the result when they finish.

Gina and me decided to focused our example with “Book Creator” on one topic: routines. Our aim of the activity was to check if students could work on a routine using this app. The idea was simple: students must create a book choosing one time of the day (morning, afternoon, evening) and illustrate it by adding recordings or images and text or audios.

We tried our best checking all the options we were allowed to try and it worked! We were really proud of our project and we will definitely use it in our classrooms.

https://youtu.be/FDpStQCDSe0

The second application that we downloaded was "BITSBOARD". 

It’s very easy to use you only have to make photos or choose images related to a topic that you are interested. Insert the image and write the name, if you want you can record how to pronounce the word, if not the application will look trough their documents the voice of another person saying the word and if you are agree with you can leave it. Once you have introduced all the images it gives you the option to play to several games using them.

The games can be played in groups, for example in this one the maximum are 4 pupils playing at the same time. They have to match the sound with the object that apperars in the image.

Bits board gives you the opportunity to choose lots of games depending on the age of the students. We share you some different games that can be used in different ages. 

And it’s also very useful if you don’t have time to create your own board, you can search through all the boards that other people published.

So, Bitsboard is a fantastic and complete tool to show contents in a new way, playing dozens of games. Also, it gives the opportunity to create your own contents, search for created boards before, and share your own boards to people and other teachers around the world.

iPad Apps (Mariona, Gemma and Mireia)

Trying with iPads

As the first experience with iPads, we had the chance to work with two apps called Book Creator and Bits Board.

Book Creator gives you the possibility to create your own book with all the new technologies possibilities such as camera, pictures, videos and voice recording. We thought that a good way to use all these possibilities was to create a book about emotions. Each group could work with one emotion and try to represent it with a picture from Internet, a picture taken by themselves, a video or a voice recording. This activity is about understanding the meaning of the emotions and creating a way to explain them.

Another possibility, as you can see in the example that we created, is to design a book related to more than one emotion. Children can work in peers or threes and they can talk about which things make them feel happy, sad, confused, angry, annoyed, scared, bored or whatever. In this second option students can learn more vocabulary because they work on more than one emotion and they can also learn more things about their classmates. After finishing the creation of the book, each group will be present theirs to the rest of the class.

We designed this activity for second year of primary because of the topic but this app can be used in other school years; we just need to adapt the content we want to work on.

We think that this app is very useful, first of all because it is a HOTS activity and it promotes the use of High order thinking skills. It allows learners to work on the four skills (reading, writing, listening, and speaking) and they learn new vocabulary. When they are creating their book they can write or record audios (speak). To check if what they have written is correct they have to read it and to check the audios they have to listen to it. They also have to read or listen the other groups’ presentations. Related to the vocabulary, they learn the name of the emotions, and also other vocabulary related to these emotions. Maybe they want to say “I feel scared when I hear a Thunder” but they don’t know the word “thunder” in English, so they have to ask to the teacher and then they learn it.

Another advantage that this app has is its visual attraction. As we have said before, it offers a lot off possibilities (pictures, audio, images…) and kids love it. Children also have an active role doing this activity and they can experiment with the IPAD and this make them be motivated. Finally, the IPAD itself makes the activity more attractive to students. They usually love new technologies.

Related to the example we created about emotions, we think that it is a beneficial activity for the teacher because with children’s creation, the teacher can know better their students; their interests and fears.

• https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B0XjKFxt21t2dHY0Ym5WcV9adWExaXVjRFJ1MUpXTWdTX3RV/view?usp=sharing

Bits Board activity is the second app we discovered in the last session. This app allows you to create flashcards related to any topic. You can take pictures or choose images that the app already offers you and write the name under the picture. Then, if you want, you can add the audio of the word. You can record the word with your voice or if you prefer, the app can also produce the words by recognizing them ones you have written them. In our example you can see flashcards related to the parts of the body.
It is a good app to work on LOTS (low order thinking skills) activities.

We think that this app is also really interesting because instead of showing to the students some flashcards that don’t mean anything for them, you can make them create these flashcards that you are going to use afterwards. In this way, their learning is more meaningful because they work on the vocabulary while they are creating the flashcards and when the teacher uses these flashcards in the class, they feel proud and also they have fun because they can see themselves on the pictures.

• https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B0XjKFxt21t2a2NwMmVqU2swYXM/view?usp=sharing

Playing with iPads

Hello girls! 

This time we are Andrea and Ari writing the entrance together. After our last session dealing with iPads and different apps to apply in our classroom we want to share with you our previous experience with these devices and all the things we learnt and created during the session. 

BOOK CREATOR

The first app we discovered was Book Creator, which allows us to create books by adding your text, images, video, music and narration and use all of your content to tell the whole story. We were asked to elaborate a book and the first idea coming to our minds was explaining what we were experiencing in that moment; talking about feelings. We added text, videos, voice recordings and drawings. Furthermore, we also used another app known as Stop Motion which added a funny touch to the whole product. We think it’s interesting to share it with you so that you can take advantage of it as well! Finally, once we finished with the book we exported it as a video and uploaded afterwards in our Drive. 

Here you can take a glance to our video: 

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0Bzs1fcmX3Fapd3JWbFhlODNiN00/view?usp=sharing

Application in the classroom:

We thought this app could be used in our classroom to ask our students for feedback. They can record themselves; write short sentences giving their opinion or even record voice notes showing their thoughts with respect to an activity, a project, the teacher’s action or whatever you want them to assess. We found really interesting the fact of obtaining some sort of feedback while at the same time they are producing language and dealing with new and up to date apps and devices, thus developing their technology skills.

This activity allow us to develop two HOTS which are Creating and Evaluating. Our students will be asked to be freely creative to design a story while at the same time they will be evaluating a process they’ve already experienced. This is a demanding activity for them but something they will enjoy for sure!

Hope you find it interesting!

BITSBOARD

The second app we learnt to use was Bitsboard. It is an app which includes a catalog of thousands of gorgeous flashcards and carefully curated lessons covering hundreds of topics. Besides, Bitsborad allows you to easily create your own flashcards sets and share them as well as to download study sets from other users. But the icing of the cake is that the app includes dozens of mini-games to work, practice, play and learn with the words of each flashcards set.

This time, we were asked to create a new Board using our own picture taken with the iPads. So we chose “Colours around us” as our topic and we took pictures of different objects of different colours that were around us in that moment.  Then, we recorded the word and finally, we uploaded the board to the Bitsboard Catalog.

Below you can see some screenshots of the flashcards and games, and if you are reading this from an iPad/iPhone you can download the “Colours around us” board by clicking here: colors around us.

Some of the flashcards:

Explore game: 

When you click the picture you can hear the word

True or false game:

Does the word match with the image?

Reader:

You have to select the image that matches the word

Application in the classroom:

We thought this app could be used in our classroom to involve the students in the teaching/learning process of new words. Instead of showing them a set of flashcards with a dull image of a paint-blot, we can ask them to take their own pictures. In this way, the new vocabulary becomes closer and more meaningful for them, and moreover, they get engaged and feel motivated because the teacher will use what they have created.

This activity allow us to develop two LOTS which are Remembering & Understanding and Applying. Our students will be asked to name some colours, understand the meaning in order to look for objects and then taking photographs of them. This would be a great activity to work on vocabulary just after have introduced the topic.

In conclusion, we really enjoyed discovering these apps and creating the activities. Little by little, we are becoming ICT experts with eager to learn more everyday!