This week we spent all in-class time creating an iMovie "Digital Story." I decided that I would not use something like this in my classroom, so I created a completely random movie about making my lunch dreams come true. It was fun creating it, and iMovie '09 worked like a charm for me. It was very intuitive and easy to use. I don't see a use in the choral classroom, but now I know I can do it if I have to. Plus, it was pretty fun to make up a song on the spot for the background. The above video is the product of this week's work!

Inspiration, Shminspiration

This week we utilized a tool that is very teacher-specific, Inspiration. This tool is apparently a tried and true too that is used to create diagrams easily by teachers. I use the term "easily" very loosely. This tool was very clumsy for me to use, and there were plenty of shortcomings that I encountered. For instance, it is impossible to use bullet points in any part of the diagram. Seriously? Also, there is no "Fit to page" option, so you have to manually resize EVERY box until it is large enough to fit on a standard piece of paper. Ridiculous.

Aside from the shortcomings, the program can create clear, good-looking diagrams. But I won't use it again.

Texture Pictures

Thursday, we did group work to create a Picasa slide show of pictures we took on a scavenger hunt. My group decided to look at textures on campus, and I was the photographer. My pictures came out surprisingly well, which was surprising because I've never taken a good picture in my life. Once again, I really enjoyed the collaboration using GoogleDocs. It really makes collaboration with others incredibly easy, and it makes completing these projects easy.

I'm not sure that I am ever going to use Picasa to share photos because I hardly ever take photos, let alone ones that I want to share with students or colleagues. But, after using it for a second time, I'm much more comfortable using it. This is a useful tool, but not a tool that I plan on using in my teaching career.