Glogster, Gabcast, Wordle, and all that jazz
Throughout this class, I am frequently being surprised by websites that I had no idea existed. I thought I was pretty knowledgeable about the Internet but I find myself being corrected on that. 
I am not complaining though, I love finding out about these new websites. (Well, new to me anyway).
One such website is the Glogster website. This is a great website to use in the classroom. Instead of writing a paper on what their life is like and who they really are, the students can get far more creative by going to Glogster. Basically, the website is about creating posters. It is very creative and colorful, and the kids would have so much fun if they could use it in the classroom. When they do a presentation, instead of using a normal poster, they could go online to Glogster and create a poster about their topic. Plus it would save them money as far as buying markers and glitter, etc.
The Gabcast website would be great for students that are auditory learners. They could listen to a clip about Jane Austen or whatever topic the kids are discussing at the time. They could also create their own audio clip. In presentations, it would probably be a great tool. For myself personally, I wouldn’t use Gabcast because I wouldn’t really be able to get the information I needed. Plus I was a little overwhelmed by the site.
Wordle is probably my favorite although it doesn’t really serve any purpose that I can think of in the classroom, other than using it for aesthetic purposes. For example, the kids could use Wordle as a graphic on their brochure, PowerPoint, poster, etc. It would make their presentations more creative.
The Museum Box website is one of the best websites to use in the classroom. When the students are doing a history project or a book report, they can go to this website and place items in a virtual box that would describe the person, event, or historical period. I saw this and my first thought was that I wish I had this available when I was in school. When I tried to create my own museum box however, I got a little confused. It took me a while to really learn all the ins and outs of it. That is my only criticism is that it can be a little confusing.
TimeRime is another excellent website for the classroom. You can make your own timeline for any event, person, or historical period. It is much simpler than Museum Box. Also, it is a secured environment and teachers have admin rights. I really like this website and I can see myself using it in the future.
Overall, I really liked all these websites and I will definitely use all of them in some way, except maybe Gabcast. Thanks to these websites, you can make learning and the Internet fun and creative. I am excited about using them in my classroom someday!
dc said,
October 20, 2009 at 2:26 pm
The key to using these sites with students is becoming familiar with them yourself, so you can see their benefits and drawbacks clearly.