Month: August 2015

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18 Apps to Support Creativity

18 Apps to Support Creativity

Subject: Digital Technologies

Strand: Digital Technologies processes and production skills: creating and thinking online

Year Level: 3/4

Content Descriptor: 4.7 Manage the creation, sharing and exchange of information with known audiences and apply agreed social protocols to protect people when communicating online

Links to other learning areas: Literacy, ICT

Links to Resource: www.edutopia.org

About this resource: This resource comes with 18 different apps to use in the classroom. Of these 18 apps it includes a digital journaling app that children can use in the classroom on their electronic devices. Children have the chance to use it both inside and outside of the classroom to be able to:

  • voice record
  • take a video
  • use drawing or captions and take photos of what they are referring to.

Basically children are merging their thinking of a journal in a way that does not have to include writing down information. Teachers can implement any topic for this resource and children can share their information through the app to their own peers.

Simplediagrams: An interactive tool allowing students to visually portray ideas
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Simplediagrams: An interactive tool allowing students to visually portray ideas

Simplediagram
SimpleDiagrams for use in Technologies Curriculum

 About resource:

SimpleDiagrams is a desktop application created by Daniel McQuillen, to help its users visualise their thoughts through the use of a simplistic ICT program. This program is designed for people to present their ideas in a visual manner, which can then be easily transferred to a PDF or PNG file.

The layout of SimpleDiagrams consists of a canvas and a toolbar. The toolbar includes options such as: text, a library of unique shapes, colours and editing tools. This resource is a valuable asset to classrooms as it can be used by teachers and students to generate graphic organisers, draft project ideas or even to create whole projects (e.g. advertisements, posters etc.). It is great for scaffolding students to use ICT to manipulate items and to organise their thought processes in a way that can be shared with peers or the wider community.

Subject: Digital Technologies

Year Level: 1-6

This will vary depending on the abilities and level of proximal development of each student, however, the success of this program also depends on the time given to students to explore and experiment with the program itself.

Strand:

-Digital Technologies Processes and Production Skills

-Design and Technologies Processes and Production Skills

Sub-Strand:

–Using digital systems

-Generating, developing and evaluating ideas

– Managing and analysing data

-Planning, producing and evaluating designed solutions

-Creating and interacting online

Link to the Resource: http://www.simplediagrams.com/

Cross-Curriculum Priorities and General Capabilities:

Critical and creative thinking (CCT), Personal and social capability (PSC), Information and Communication Technology (ICT), Literacy (LIT) and Numeracy.

(Note: These will vary depending on the context in which it is used.)

Links to Other Learning Areas:

SimpleDiagrams can be used in any primary school subject as it allows students to organise their ideas efficiently and to be creative. It can be quite useful in all subject areas when used to generate personalised graphic organisers.

A Classroom Activity Using this Resource:

An example of where Simplediagrams can be used in the Technologies Curriculum

In a year 2 classroom context, SimpleDiagrams may be used by students to display the different uses of plants and animals throughout the community and what the needs of the plants and animals are.SimpleDiagrams Purpose

The type of SimpleDiagrams presentation designed by the students can be guided by the teacher or can be chosen by the student. This tool therefore allows students to work at their own developmental level and to present work in a way that is logical to them. Students can add pictures, speech bubbles, text and textboxes in their displays.

How to use this Resource:

Creating an account

– Access the website through the link provided.

– Choose the Trial/Buy button do download the application onto your desktop.

– Choose the license that is most suited to your classroom and school needs.

Creating a design

– Make use of the toolbar on the right side of the canvas.

– Select the shapes icon and the most appropriate category in the dropdown menu (e.g. Basic Shapes).

– To edit any shape or object on the canvas, select the item by clicking the left mouse button. An additional toolbar will appear with options to modify the selected item.

– For more detailed explanations regarding the use of SimpleDiagrams, refer to http://www.simplediagrams.com/docs
Simplediagram man

References:

Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA). (2015). The Australian curriculum: Design and technologies. Retrieved from http://www.australiancurriculum.edu.au/technologies/design-and-technologies/curriculum/f-10?layout=1#level5-6

SimpleDiagrams [Online images]. (2014). Retrieved from http://www.simplediagrams.com/

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Innovative research in fibre production in Western Australia

Subject: Design and Technologies

Year level: 3-6

Strand: Design and Technologies Knowledge and Understanding

Content Descriptor:

Year 3 & 4

Recognise the role of people in design and technologies occupations and explore factors, including sustainability that impact on the design of products, services and environments to meet community needs(ACTDEK010)

Investigate how forces and the properties of materials affect the behaviour of a product or system (ACTDEK011)

Investigate food and fibre production and food technologies used in modern and traditional societies (ACTDEK012)

Investigate the suitability of materials, systems, components, tools and equipment for a range of purposes (ACTDEK013)

Year 5 & 6

Investigate how people in design and technologies occupations address competing considerations, including sustainability in the design of products, services and environments for current and future use(ACTDEK019)

Investigate characteristics and properties of a range of materials,systems, components, tools and equipment and evaluate the impact of their use (ACTDEK023)

Links to Information Resource:

http://www.news.uwa.edu.au/business-briefing/grow-your-own-dress-uwa

https://au.news.yahoo.com/thewest/wa/a/26792396/cheers-to-dress-made-from-beer/

Cheers to dress made from beer

Cross curriculum priorities and General Capabilities: Sustainability,  Critical and Creative thinking, Information and Communication Technology.

Links to other learning areas: Science, English, Art.

Summary: Perth UWA researcher, Gary Cass and artist Donna Franklin have collaborated in a project to produce fabric from bacterias grown on wine and beer. The project was instigated after marrying up waste product in the wine and beer industries, with the cellulose fibres formed by bacteria. In 2007 a dress made from wine toured the world and currently the dress made from beer (pictured above) is on tour in the Milan fashion show. Dr Franklin comments, “This material looks at the evolution of future fashion and how garments can change”. According to the University of Western Australia,”the Council of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences, established in 2003, aimed to better link arts and industry through its national innovative role improving cross linkages with arts, science and technology” “It’s about allowing scientists to use their imagination, and blurs the lines between art and science.” Says UWA researcher, Gary Cass.

 

www.news.uwa.edu.au/business-briefing/grow-your-own-dress-uwa

au.news.yahoo.com/thewest/wa/a/26792396/cheers-to-dress-made-from-beer/

http://www.australiancurriculum.edu.au/technologies/design-and-technologies/curriculum/

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Teachers pay teachers resources

Subject: Design and technologies

Year level: F-12

Cross curriculum priorities and general capabilities:

  • Numeracy
  • Literacy
  • Information and Communication Technology
  • Critical and Creative Thinking
  • Sustainability
  • Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander histories and culture

Links to other learning areas:

  • English
  • Maths
  • Science
  • Literacy
  • Humanities and Social Sciences
  • The Arts

Link to resource: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/

TeachersPayTeachers

Summary: Teachers pay teachers is an on line teaching resource facility. It is created and added to by teachers world wide. Some resources have to be purchased and others are free. This site caters for all age groups and capabilities. There are also monitoring, planning, reporting and assessment documents in the online store www.teacherspayteachers.com/

http://www.australiancurriculum.edu.au/technologies/design-and-technologies/curriculum/f-10?layout=1

Minecraft EDU
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Minecraft EDU

MinecraftEdu

Subject: Digital Technologies

Year Level: 3-12

Strand:Digital Technologies processes and production skills

Sub strand:Using digital systems

4.4 Use a range of digital systems and peripherals for diverse purposes, and transmit different types of data

Link to the resource

Cross curriculum priorities and general capabilities
Literacy (LIT), Critical and creative thinking (CCT), Personal and social capability (PSC), Information and Communication Technology (ICT)

Links to other learning areas
English, History, Geography

 

 

 

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Augmented Reality

 Aurasma is a revolutionary Augmentation Reality (AR) app. AR technology combines advanced  image and pattern  recognition to merge the real-world with rich interactive content called “Auras”. All you need to make the magical AR come to life is an Aurasma account, an Android or iOS device and a little imagination.

Screen Shot 2015-08-10 at 4.35.52 am

http://www.aurasma.com/#/whats-your-aura

Links to Australian Curriculum

Digital Technologies processes and production skills

Strand: Collaborating and managing
Foundation to Year 2
Work with others to create and organise ideas and information using information systems, and share these with known people in safe online environments (ACTDIP006)
Years 3 and 4
Work with others to plan the creation and communication of ideas and information safely, applying agreed ethical and social protocols (ACTDIP013)
Years 5 and 6
Manage the creation and communication of ideas and information including online collaborative projects, applying agreed ethical, social and technical protocols (ACTDIP022)

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Continue reading →

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ToonDoo

Subject: Design Technologies

Strand: Design and Technologies processes and production skills

Sub-Strand: 2.6 Visualise, generate, develop, evaluate and communicate design ideas through a range of media including digital technologies

Link to the resource: http://www.toondoo.com/

Year groups: Years 4 and up

Links to other learning areas: English and Art, Languages other than English

How you use this resource:

ToonDoo is a fun and interactive way for students to create their own cartoon and comic strip on the computer. By creating their character online the students who are not confident at drawing are able to feel comfortable and feel like they’ve accomplished something as good as one of their peers who could be a better drawer. Therefore, they are generating and creating these characters and then designing their own comic strip from a variety of backgrounds. This then can link in well with an English, an art project or be part of a language class (have to create a comic strip in another language).

 

toondoo

 

 

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Kahoot!- Game-based learning platform

Subject: Design and Technologies

Year Level: 1-6

Strand: Processes and Production Skills

Sub strand: 

-Representation of data

-Technologies and society

-Technologies and contexts

Link to the resource:

https://create.kahoot.it/?_ga=1.125054666.1145224492.1438751319#

Cross curriculum priories and general capabilities:

Can be any of the three cross curriculum priorities when created to relate to one (Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander histories and cultures, Asia and Australia’s engagement with Asia and Sustainability)

General Capabilities include Literacy (LIT), Information and communication technology (ICT), Critical and creative thinking (CCT).

 

Links to other learning areas:

English, Mathematics, science, history, geography, and health and physical education.

How to use this resource:

Kahoot! Is a game based learning platform on which you can create your own and participate in quizzes, discussions and surveys. There is already a range of premade quizzes at specific learning levels that you can assign your students f there is a one relevant to your learning area. Kahoot! Is available on most devices (such as computers, Ipads and Smart Phones) and each activity is assigned a game pin so that your students can access it without having a link.

A classroom activity using this resource:

Due to the fact you can create your own quiz you can use this resource to support a range of different classroom activities, for example you can create a quiz to support a lesson you have done regarding a history topic, that supports the content you have learnt and use the quiz as a formative testing tool. Though you can also use the quiz results as a mathematical lesson- analysing the results and creating a graph for example. The level of the activity can vary from year one to year six that is why this is a helpful technological tool.

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ReadWriteThink.org’s – Word Mover

Subject:Design and Technologies

Year Level: 1-6

Strand:Knowledge and Understanding

Sub strand:

  • Representation of data
  • Technologies and society
  • Technologies and contexts

Link to the resource:

http://www.readwritethink.org/files/resources/interactives/Word_Mover/

Cross curriculum priories and general capabilities:

Can be any of the three cross curriculum priorities when created to relate to one (Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander histories and cultures, Asia and Australia’s engagement with Asia and Sustainability)

General Capabilities include Literacy (LIT), Information and communication technology (ICT), Critical and creative thinking (CCT).

Links to other learning areas: English

How to use this resource:

ReadWriteThink.org’s Word mover is an interactive program that can be used to supplement classroom instruction, reinforce concepts taught in class, offer increased student engagement and promote out of school literacy.

A classroom activity using this resource:

A classroom activity that could be undertaken while using this resource is splitting the students into small groups and giving them a specific subject (such as the teachers desk or class decoration etc.). In these groups, ask the students to brainstorm a list of words and phrases that describe their object. As a class share all of the brainstormed words, create a word bank. And then from this, add these words to a word bank or word mover. Lastly the students then create their own poems relating the subject.

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Prezi

Subject: Digital technologies

Year Level: 5+

Strand: Digital technologies process and production skills

Sub-strand: Collect, access and present different types of data using simple software to create information and solve problems (ACTDIP009)

Link to the resource: https://prezi.com/

Cross curricular priorities and general capabilities: 

  • Information and communication technology (ICT)
  • Critical and creative thinking
  • Literacy

Links to learning areas: 

  • The arts
  • Languages
  • English

A classroom activity using this resource:

This website is used to create a uniquely designed presentation, it is quick and easy to create a wonderful presentation. The information is put into a mind-map layout, once the presentation is started it zooms a section and continues until all sections are complete. This resource could be used in many ways; mainly a way for students to present a research task, their news, a debate, a speech, or even used by the teacher in a lesson.

How to use this resource:

  • Create an account
  • Add your information
  • Design your presentation
  • Create a path (order) of slides
  • Present