Dropbox

I know everyone has probably heard of Dropbox but this really is my top "can't live without" Web 2.0 tool. If you are not using it, you truly are missing out on a great productivity tool. I would used to carry around tons of flash drives and try to remember where I put them or try not to lose them. Honestly, I very seldom use them anymore because Dropbox takes care of all that for me. It is basically a virtual flash drive that is always there and you never have to worry about losing it, and you can always have access from anywhere there is internet. Currently, I have Dropbox on my home computer, work computer, iPhone, and all my other technology devices. The moment I add or modify a document it instantly updates it to all the other devices. I can't tell you how convenient it has been to pull up documents on my phone when I need them. Anyways, I have been accessing files all night from Dropbox so it prompted me to make a quick blog post about it. I will now leave everyone with a bit of humor below!

I think this pretty much sums up how a lot of us are feeling at the moment!

Spell with flickr

By now, most of you have probably seen the personalized name frames that spell out each letter of the name uniquely. My colleague Cathy came across Spell with flickr several months back and introduced it to me. The website basically creates the same effect in such a quick, simple manner.  You type in a name, phrase, or word and Spell with flickr creates it by pulling single images from flickr and using it to generate what you have typed in.

Now the really cool part! You can click on each individual letter and filter through images of the letter until you find one that you like; so, you have the ability to do some customizing. Notice the B and A are the same style of letter. After browsing through a few of the letter B's my word "Back" now looks like this...

I am all about simple so I thought this would be a good resource to share. Besides, think about how much fun students could have practicing their spelling words like this!

Get Your Voki On!

Voki is a fun way of introducing technology into your lessons. Teachers love it because it motivates students to present book reports, projects, read alouds, poems, speeches, or review comprehension of a lesson. Students love it because they can be creative and design their own avatar from lots of character and setting choices. The coolest thing about Voki is it allows you to record your own audio! However, you can also use the text-to-speech feature or use a phone to make your recording. Check out the Voki I just created...

If you want to get started on your own, go to www.voki.com and sign up for a free account. You can start out by browsing through character choices.

Have fun customizing your character with different hair styles, clothing, and bling! There are also options for you to customize the color and size of the character's mouth, eyes, hair, and skin. As well as, tweaking features such as body, height, and width.

Next, select a background for your character's setting. This may take a long time if your like me and browse through tons! And of course, choose how you are going to give your Voki a voice.

Don't forget to Publish your Voki when you are completely finished. You can then share your Voki through email, website link, or embed within your blog or website.

Want to check out some super cute ones? This link has student created examples from a kindergarten class. My favorite is second row down, third across :) Click HERE.

Have fun getting your Voki on!

TpT $10 Gift Card Giveaway!

I can't believe it is already August and everyone is gearing up to go back to school! This week was actually my first official week back for the new year. I'm really excited because I have been an educational technology specialist for the last four years but will now be a literacy specialist and looking forward to the change. I started this blog at the beginning of the year but haven't been able to post as much as I would have liked due to all the training and transition over the summer. So, I really appreciate all my followers and just hit #50!

I thought this would be the perfect time to do a small giveaway where someone can pick out a few back to school items from TpT. I'm trying out rafflecopter for the giveaway so be sure to enter!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Alphabetimals

This is a fun little website that has an interactive alphabet book, ABC song video, name typer, free printable resources, and even an app you can download to your iPad. Super cute for the primary grades.

www.alphabetimals.com

I have to be honest and say I absolutely love creating words and names with Name Typer! This can also be an engaging way for your students to practice spelling words and typing skills at the same time. You have the option to print it out or share by email. I also like creating cute names like this for myself and using it as my email signature. It is amazing how many more teachers read my emails when I have something cute on it!

 

You can also have students read the interactive alphabet book. There is an animal that is shaped like each letter of the alphabet. Students can click to hear an audio sound of what the animal sounds like or hear the word pronounced.

 

Remember to also check out the ABC video song, free printables, and iPad app. Also, if you are lucky enough to have an interactive whiteboard, this would be great to project and have students interact with it.

I took a little break from blogging this summer so check back often because I'll be posting a lot more fun, interactive websites for the beginning of school. I have so many I can't decide which ones to highlight first :)

New Blog on the Block!

I am happy to announce that one of my best friends, who is super talented, just started her own blog. She is a technology specialist and always has great ideas and resources to share. So if you get a chance, stop by and check it out.

www.teacherplayground.com

Lovely Blog Award

I was excited to learn that my blog was awarded the Lovely Blog Award by Primary Possibilities. So if you haven't checked out their blog, you should head on over there. It's now my turn to pass on the award to other lovely blogs!

Once you receive the award, you must follow 3 rules:
1. Follow the person that gave you the award
2. Link back to the person that gave you the award
3. Pass the award on to 15 new bloggers

Here are the blogs I'm passing it on to (sorry if some of you have it already):