Make Learning Active! Help Your Students Stay Motivated Using Web 2.0: Web 2.0 Tools

Concept/Mind mapping the fun and collaborative way!

Mind42.com

Have your students brainstorm about their topic using Mind42.com.  Students can work together or independently.  Add web links, upload documents and add images.

Padlet is a collaborative place to share ideas, resources and gain non-threatening feedback from your students.

http://padlet.com/

How to use Padlet in your classroom:

• Brainstorming activities. Gives students the opportunity to write down topics.
• At the end of class, have students write down three new things they learned.  Or questions/concerns they still have. This gives students time to reflect on what they've learned and gives you ideas on what to cover better next time.
• Create a competition, ask questions and see who can post the answer fastest!
• Have student write down synonyms to a word you are using as an example.

QR Codes (Quick Response) Scan the code with the camera on your smart phone. QR codes can link you to URLs, download and display documents, send an email, send a text...really display anything.

QR Code Generators: http://keremerkan.net/qr-code-and-2d-code-generator/ OR http://qrcode.kaywa.com/

QR Codes in the classroom:

-List review questions on the door, students can scan the QR code on their way out of class

-Have students create QR codes with contact information to exchange for group work

-List of additional research information for specific courses

Google Documents

http://www.google.com/

This document sharing tool allows your students to collaborate and share files with ease.

Photo sharing sites add a visual component to your classroom, your students will love it. 

• Have your students take a picture of themselves and upload it with a welcome message.
• Create a scavenger hunt and have them turn the photos into a slide show.

www.flickr.com	http://animoto.com/	www.bubblejoy.com

Twitter can be a great way to bring social media tools into the classroom in a safe and eucational way.

http://twitter.com/

• Use Twitter in a similar way to a discussion board.  Have students listen to lecture and comment or "tweet" while the lecture is in progress.  This  keeps dialog open and questions can be answered as they arise.  A assistant or student could play the role of moderator. 
• Welcome students feedback by sharing your Twitter handle at the begining of class.  Only display the backchannel if you are prepared.  It can be distracting to you and your students.
• Use Twitter for current events.Students can read newspapers others have created OR they can create their own in groups. http://paper.li/  paper.li organizes links shared on Twitter and Facebook into an easy to read newspaper-style format.  
• Foster global connections.  Students can get information and share their thoughts with people all over the globe.

• Use Twitter to watch a conversation or presentation.  Then allow students to ask questions to the presenters.  Ex:  http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA6708199.html

Use social booking sites to have students create a collection of resources as a group or individually. 

http://delicious.com/

http://www.diigo.com/

This can be a great way for groups to collaborate on a research project and comment on these resources.

Many times students have trouble finding synonyms for their topics. 

http://www.visualthesaurus.com

Visual Thsaurus is a good way to getting them thinking about terms to search.

• Have students use the thesaurus to find similar terms and explore their topic

*This tool is only free for about 5 word maps.  After that you will be asked to purchase a subscription.

Pinterest can be used as a visual bookmarking site.

http://pinterest.com/

Images from around the web can be pinned.  These images can  be categorized by the author onto various bulletin boards.  These bulletin boards can be shared and are searchable.  

For more ideas on how to use Pinterest take a look at this link http://www.pearsonschoolsystems.com/blog/?p=424 

*Pinterest requires that you request an invite.

*All images used must link back to their source.

Glogster lets you create interactive posters.  They can incorporate pictures, music, moving images and videos.  They can easily be shared on Facebook and other social media sites.

http://edu.glogster.com/

-Students can use Glogster to create interactive posters rather than more traditional paper posters. 

-Students can create unique posters that introduce themselves to you and the class.

-This is a new way to cover topics using a multi-modal approach.

http://lmgilbert.edu.glogster.com/technology-integration/

SibeVibe: Free Basic Student and Teacher Accounts
https://www.sidevibe.com/

SideVibe allows you to build activiteis such as discussion posts and quizes on top of existing web content.  You can turn any website into a classroom lesson!

Example:

Ask students to discuss something.

View the results from the teacher view.

Ask students to answer quiz questions.