EDT676

iPod Websites
 []

 This article briefly explains some of the applications iPods have in various classrooms. They discuss their use for foreign language courses, as well as their various uses in college courses as a note-taking tool. Overall, they cite several positive applications of the iPod in classroom use.

 []

 This article discusses Duke University’s decision to make academic information available for download onto students’ iPods. These study materials, lectures, etc. provide students more accurate information for students. Although critics state this could deter students from actually attending class-if their lectures are available for download they may be more inclined to skip-proponents claim that even though course materials are available, it does not replace the “In-class” experience and information students will receive. Either way, Duke will continue to use iPods, and several other colleges and universities have begun to do the same.

 []

 This article discusses the uses of iPods in an elementary classroom. Teachers decided to embrace their students’ love for technology and have incorporated this technology into their classrooms. Students are using their iPods primarily to create podcasts. However, the applications are cross-curricular; podcasts can be created around nearly any subject. Additionally, younger students are bringing home “loaner” iPods to review letter sounds, sight words, and other early-elementary reading skills.

 []

 This article, highlighted on Apple’s website, demonstrates the iPods use in an elementary classroom. It follows an elementary class with a high ELL student population. The teacher used the iPod’s voice recording software to improve student’s reading fluency. The use of the iPod as a means of increasing student fluency was beneficial, as their reading fluency has increased at six-times the normal rate!

 []

 This article outlines the success a Minnesota elementary school has had incorporating iPods into their classroom. Teachers interviewed stated that their students are far more motivated to learn using their iPods than through the traditional “paper and pencil” method. They state that students are enthusiastic and engaged in the multitude of learning applications that can be downloaded; they even go so far to say that students need to be “pried away” from their iPods!

Podcasts (Reviews)
Podcast Kid [] A five year old podcaster talks about child-specific issues, such as friends, siblings, lying, sharing, etc. The fact that the podcast is done by a child makes it that much more appealing to my students. The student-friendly language, silly stories, etc. makes this podcast one that my students enjoy.

Start Cooking [] This podcast provides simple recipes and basic kitchen "need to know" skills in each podcast. The recipes are simple and easy to follow and there is a very nice selection of recipes to choose from. For a beginner cook, like myself, this podcast is perfect as I often need to people to "talk me through" or "show me" how to cook something, rather than just reading a recipe.

Applications
__Educational: __

Word Magic  [] <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> Great for early elementary students. This application can be used as a literacy tool. It works primarily with letter sounds, word building, etc. in a "video game" type of format, making it fun for students.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> Math Drills Lite <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> [] <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> Addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division math flashcards. Great for quick math fact review for students. This application provides manipulatives, gives suggestions on how to solve problems, and also provides the user with a variety of settings.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> Solar Walk <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> [] <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> Students can view the solar system in 3-D. There is a wealth of information about each planet, including beautiful pictures. This would be a wonderful research application for students during a solar system unit.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> abc Pocket Phonics <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> [] <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> Students can practice spelling high frequency words. Additionally, they can practice hearing and identifying specific sounds in a word, and practice their handwriting!

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> The Wheels on the Bus <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> [] <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> A fun application featuring the popular song "The Wheels on the Bus." Great for early readers and ELL students for word to print recognition. Also, a great way for students to practice their fluency.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> __Personal:__

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> Awesome Note <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> [] <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> An awesome application for people who like to take notes! A great "reminder" application that allows for separate pages for specific subjects, alerts, reminders, etc.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> 30-Minute Meals <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> [] <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> This application features quick meal recipes from chef Jamie Oliver. It provides step-by-step (and photo-by-photo) directions of the preparation for the meals. A great application for beginner cooks!

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> Around Me <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> [] <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> An easy and practical application that works wherever you are. The phone literally locates where you are and identifies pertinent places (restaurants, gas stations, coffee shops, etc) that are "around you." It then identifies how far away you currently are and will provide directions on how to get there.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> Urban Spoon <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> [] <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> A very cool application that allows you to search for restaurants in your area. Not only does it provide restaurants in your area; it allows you to choose an area in your city, type of cuisine, and how much money you are willing to spend. For indecisive diners, it offers a "spin" option that will spin all the available options for you and provide you with an option!

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> Shazam <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> [] <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> Awesome application for music lovers! Simply let your iPod "listen" to a song playing around you (car, T.V., restaurant, etc.), it will search it's database, and let you know who the artist is and the song name. Great for people who get frustrated when they cannot remember the name of a popular song!

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Podcasts
<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> Teacher: <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> media type="file" key="5_8_2010 10_40 AM.mp3" width="240" height="20"

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> This podcast was created as a morning message. It welcomes students into the classroom, provides them with quick reminders of the morning routines, and then tells them their morning journal topic. This would be a great way to provide students with quick reminders of the morning expectations without me having to repeat myself repeatedly!

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> Student: <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> media type="file" key="All About Room 17.wmv" width="300" height="300" <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> This podcast is a project created by my students. My first graders wrote autobiographies and then read them into a microphone to create an "All About Room 17" project. The students loved creating this podcast! They really loved hearing their voices accompanied by their pictures! They were very eager to show anyone and everyone that would watch! I think it was a wonderful way to "publish" their autobiographies!

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Reflection
<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">I can see myself using the iPod in the classroom in a number of different ways. The fact that it is so portable, easy to use, and a size that is ideal for younger students' hands, makes it an attractive option for classroom use. Students of this age are already so technologically savvy that the necessary instruction on how to use the iPod would be relatively limited. I love the wide variety of educational applications available for download. ITunes has done a wonderful job of providing educators with a plethora of resources available for download for free or for a very minimal fee. I really like the math or literacy flashcards and I can see how using them would be incredibly beneficial for students. In addition, the literacy games and online stories and podcasts would be great educational resources for my first graders. Additionally, the appeal of using a "cool" iPod would only motivate the students' more while using it. While I think a classroom set would be ideal, I can see myself using the one iPod in my classroom in a variety of instances.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> Personally, I think the iPod is a great tool to use for music, video, and fun applications. I currently own the iPhone, so the differences between the two are limited. However, the iPod is slimmer and would be easier for me to exercise with or take on trips. Additionally, I like the fact that I can receive my school e-mail through the iPod. This makes checking e-mail so much easier! Overall, the iPod is a great piece of technology that I can easily integrate into my daily life--in both professional and personal capacities.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">YouTube Video
media type="youtube" key="PKxmk2-431w" height="385" width="480"

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">This short video shows the use of an iPod in a seventh grade classroom setting. Students were using the popular computer game Sims3 to learn about the elements of fiction. Specifically, the element of "characters" in a fiction story. Students used the comprehensive and detailed process of creating a Sims character to further develop their understanding of character development in fiction stories. I chose this video because it very simply showed how easily technology, combined with a fun game that students love, can be transformed into a learning opportunity that students will find motivating and fun!

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Audiobooks
<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> [|Books Should Be Free] <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> This website contains hundreds of free audio books available for download. The website breaks down their books into genres, as well as a Top 100 category. Books are available for download to both iTunes directly, or as a general mp3 file saved to the computer. The only downside to this website is that the books are rather dated, so students may not be all that interested in most of the books available.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> [|Audio Books for Free] <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> This website contains many audio books available for download. Again, the website contains mostly dated books. However, they are neatly organized and could be well suited for a middle/high school audience as it contains some "required" classic reading.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> [|Kids Audio Books] <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> An collection of audio books, organized alphabetically, available for download. While the site may take a while to go through (to find quality selections) it has quite a few books that would be appropriate for younger grades.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> [|LibriVox] <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> A very comprehensive collection of audio books. Many of these books are not appropriate for students, however, I'm sure with some searching many good books could be found!

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">iTunes U
<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> [|Dancing in Education]

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> This video illustrates the integration of dance into content-area curriculum. A primary teacher in the U.K. utilized the talents of a professional dancer to teach students about the human body. I liked this particular video as it provides students with a chance get up and move while learning important content information. This is definitely something I would do with my students to actively engage them in their own learning.