Publishers Note: The Magic Carpet Ride has been licensed by Apple Computer to be bundled with other products to be sold to Apple's Worldwide Education Customers.

Introduction

Chapter 1 - Selecting Educational Software

In this chapter readers will learn to identify the educational software resources available, describe informational, instructional, and creativity resources for the K-12 classroom, and develop classroom activities that incorporate educational software.

 

Chapter 2 - Designing and Developing Desktop Presentations

In this chapter readers will learn to discuss the advantages and disadvantages of desktop presentations, select information to include on projected materials, lay out desktop presentations, discuss the design and use of templates, compare and contrast the contents of various tables, charts, and graphs,and discuss the development of desktop presentations and slide shows.

 

Chapter 3 - Designing and Developing Multimedia Resources

In this chapter readers will learn to define multimedia and describe its features, describe and develop different types of student interactions using multimedia, describe different levels of student and teacher multimedia development, apply design guidelines to multimedia projects using HyperStudio and other software, and create multimedia materials in various subject areas.

 

Chapter 4 - Integrating and Managing Learning Resources

In this chapter readers will learn to link outcomes, activities, and assessments in lessons that incorporate technology, manage technology resources in the classroom, and develop large-scale, student-centered projects that incorporate technology.

 

Index

 

Each child is unique and each teacher is unique. Explore all the technologies and select those resources that best fit your teaching style and the learning styles of your students.

 

Anyone can learn to use a computer, but it takes time, talent, and creativity to effectively integrate technology into the classroom. This book was developed for teachers who want to learn the basics of software selection and integration. It was also designed to help teachers design and development multimedia projects for their classrooms. Once you've mastered the basics, you'll be able to involve students in using these tools to create exciting classroom projects!

 

About the Book

This book contains selected chapters from Building Treehouses for Learning: Technology in Today's Classrooms. Most of the hardware, software, and peripherals discussed are available for both the Macintosh and Windows platforms, so you'll be able to apply the skills you learn in this book to whatever equipment you may have at your school. New versions of hardware and software are constantly being introduced. Be aware that the screens may vary depending on the version of the programs you are using.

 

Along the margins of the book you'll find "Magic Tips" to remind you about key concepts. You might even want to add your own tips as reminders to yourself!

"Internet Connections" will provide Internet resources that will be helpful in expanding your exploration and learning. Remember that the Internet is constantly changing. If the address no longer works, try using a search engine and search by the topic or title provided.

"Try Its" get you involved with creating activities and materials. You can't just read about technology, you've got to do it!

When using still cameras or video on location, make certain you take the powercord and extra batteries. Keep a log of your pictures. Most cameras take their best pictures outdoors at about 5-10 feet from the camera. In addition, bright colors turn out the best.

If you take photographs on a standard 35mm camera, you can send in your pictures and have them placed on a CD for integration into multimedia projects. In addition to pictures you take yourself, you can also purchase CDs filled with photographs. Figure 3-31 shows pictures from video still clipart.

Another source of digital photographs is the Internet. Figure 3-32 shows pictures taken from the Internet for multimedia projects. Again, make certain you cite sources when you use images you have not produced yourself.

There are endless uses for digitized pictures. A few ideas are provided to get you started thinking about classroom applications.

Portfolios. It's hard to incorporate 3-dimensional products into a student's portfolio. With the digital camera, you can take pictures of models, dioramas, displays, and mobiles, then paste them into a word processing package or hypermedia stack. Students can then describe their project and print out a black and white or full color paper copy.

Before/After Projects. Students often participate in projects that show changes over time. For example, your students might work on a community clean-up project. Before and after pictures could be taken showing the positive impact of the clean-up project.

Seasonal Projects. Record the changing seasons with the digital camera (see Figure 3-33a). Explore the plants and animals of different seasons. Figure 3-33b shows a project on the different types of mushrooms in a locate park. Go on-location to a local river or nature area and take pictures during four different parts of the year highlighting the changing vegetation and wildlife. Add these changes to a class stack that is built throughout the year. Write about the area and incorporate pictures as shown in Figure 3-34a.

Growth Projects. How many times have you seen those Dixie Cups with beans growing on the window sill? You can add fun to this project by having students take pictures of their projects each day as they grow.

Sequence Projects. Students often need to demonstrate the steps in a process. Students could then create games asking students to arrange the pictures in the correct order on paper or within a hypermedia stack.

Correct/Incorrect Projects. Physical education teachers are always looking for ways to incorporate technology into their classes. Have students take pictures of correct and incorrect methods for particular physical activities such as holding a softball bat or golf club, starting a dance, or shooting a basketball. Students could incorporate these into their own procedures manuals.

Illustrate Reports. Use the digital camera to illustrate multimedia reports. For example, a report on recycling could be brought to life with pictures of items that can and can't be recycled. A multimedia project on architecture would be much more meaningful with photographs of homes in the community representing various styles. Include real artifacts in your project on Native Americans (see Figure 3-34b.).

Creative Writing Projects. "Pictures can speak a thousand words," and are great for story starters. Ask students to take pictures of various places and objects. Then have them write stories about the place or object. Or, take pictures of students showing various emotions and use those as story starters.

What's Next? Projects. Use pictures as starting points for group discussions, interactive stories, or consequences activities. For example, the first card could show a beer can sitting in the seat of a car. Ask students to write about the consequences on the second card. Or, take pictures of incorrect procedures and ask students to discuss what might happen as a result.

Community Map Projects. Create maps of the community and with photographs of important landmarks and buildings.

Math Projects. Take a series of pictures and create real-world math problems.

Careers Projects. Ask students to spend a day with an adult in a career of interest. Take pictures throughout the day and ask students to create a stack titled: A Day in the life of an Architect, Baker, or Lawyer.

Illustration Projects. Ask students to illustrate their favorite book with pictures they take with the digital camera. How do they visualize the setting? Who do the characters look like? It's fun to compare student's ideas of what book characters and settings would look like.

Picture Background Projects. Use still video images as backgrounds for writing projects. For example, a wooded landscape might be a nice background for a poem. A wall of graffiti would work for an article about the inner city.

Modified Picture Projects. Consider pasting digital pictures into a paint program and modifying them. Students could create interesting abstract, self-portraits using this technique.

Audio/Tutorial Projects. Create and narrate a series of pictures in a hypermedia stack. If hypermedia tools aren't available, ask students to create an audio tape to go with their pictures.

CD/Picture Projects. Add a CD music background to a series of QuickTake slides pasted into a hypermedia program.

Illustrate It Projects. Rather than just asking students to write about it, they can take pictures. For example, they could take pictures of the proper hand motions for bike safety.