Integrating Technology in the Classroom

Using Screencast-O-Matic and Windows Live Movie Maker, here is a "quick" tour of how I integrate technology in my classroom.  Be sure to check out the complete list of projects and resources by clicking on the Integrating Technology tab.

Tagxedo: A Tuxedo for Word Clouds

Tagxedo is another nifty free tool for creating customized word clouds. Compared to Wordle, Tagxedo has more options and the ability to customize the shape of the word including uploading a picture of your own choice. Tagxedo will also use one's blog, tweets, website, and other sources for the content of the cloud.

Think of Tagxedo as a way for dressing up word clouds. While I like Wordle's simplicity for using a word cloud for analysis of a speech, poem, or short story, I prefer the use of Tagxedo for embedding symbolism in student-created projects and to guide students through the process of making artistic choices in an activity that is relevant to their own lives.

How to...

Students wrote "Where am I from" poems as modeled by poet George Ella Lyons and then created a word cloud  symbolic of their identity and the places that shaped their identity. The screencast below shows how to use Tagxedo and upload your own image (by the way, using Screencast-O-Matic, I created the screencast and uploaded it to Youtube in about 7 minutes total during 2nd period today).

Student Examples

Students posted their projects to their small groups in Edmodo for review. Students can then discuss artistic choices, as well as easily see commonalities among their classmates.  This quick project could also be used as an ice-breaker in the beginning of the year as a way for the students and teacher to get to know one another. 

We are using this activity as an introduction to John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men-- a novella centered on the themes of belonging to and yearning for one's own place. OMM is also rich in symbolism ("Tell me about the rabbits, George!"), and this activity provides an introduction to the meaning of chosen symbols. 

Student often question an English teacher's analysis of literature: How do you KNOW John Steinbeck intended the rabbits to represent George and Lennie's dreams? One answer is found in asking the author and conducting literary research: go through John Steinbeck's published letters and journals or contact the folks at the Steinbeck Institute in Salinas, California (I have!). The other answer can be found in activities where students are authors and create. Students should be making the same kind of informed choices when crafting a creative piece. The three students pictured to the left used the star, infinity, and yin-yang shapes. While I, as the reader, can postulate that these shapes represent always reaching for balance in one's learning and life, the only way to know conclusively is to ask the artist. So ask the students, "why?"  You just might learn something new.

Digital Citizenship & Data Collection

With all this use of technology and the notion that prospective employers and college admissions officers are researching applicants, students should learn how to be responsible digital citizens and consider the effects of their digital footprints. Are students stomping through the online world, tip-toeing delicately, or dancing madly through the streets a la Mardi Gras?

This topic came up in last night's #engchat on Twitter about college admissions essays. Students tracking their digital footprint could make for a horrifying or surprising project and very relevant in this world where social media puts one's actions on full display.

In thinking about Wordle for analyzing texts, students could complete similar steps for social network aggregation and create a word cloud of their Twitter tweets and blog posts by using Tagxedo or copy/pasting FaceBook status updates into Wordle.

The Process:

1. Students would go to Tagxedo.com and enter in their Twitter handle. Tagxedo collects the tweets and creates the word cloud. Students can adjust the shape, color, font, and layout of the word cloud to create a desired effect. Students could also use a social network aggregator or copy-paste the statuses and tweets into Wordle and create a word cloud.
2. Students would analyze the word clouds and write a reflection journal entry. Is this an accurate portrayal of the student? 
3. The teacher could share with the class the word clouds (without the owner's name) and have the class infer and make judgments about the owner of the Wordle.
4. The class could discuss ways to "clean up" profiles and how to market one's self appropriately on social media. Brainpop offers a site where users can take online quizzes on various digital topics and teachers can access additional lesson plans on digital citizenship.

This project requires some honesty and openness to not leave out "scandalous" posts. The point is to see the messiness and the nefariousness of social networking to open students' eyes to how other's perceive their actions on the web: Enlightenment should then lead to personal growth and improvement.

Grading

Students can be graded on the completion of the process, the journal writing, and discussion participation using the OSU rubric. The epiphany and final outcome is more important than the grade. I'm actually reluctant to grade an assignment such as this because the formative process is much more valuable for the students' learning than a summative grade.

Sample

This word cloud was created on Tagxedo using my blog posts.  It is obvious what I write most about!

Wordle for Visual Analysis & Prediction

Wordle is a nifty little site that creates word clouds that can be used as an introductory "Do Now" or "Anticipatory Set" (using steps 1-5 below),  and later as a culminating activity and project (steps 6 & 7) using analytic thinking, prediction, collaboration, writing, and presentation skills that align with the Common Core Standards. This activity could be used for any age group.

The Process:

1. Copy/paste the text of the story in Wordle to create the word cloud. Adjust the settings to create the desired effect.
2. Project the Wordle for all students to see.
3. Student individually write reactions/impressions of the wordle (5 mins) and create sentences using only the words presented in the Wordle.
4. Students turn to their neighbor or work in groups and discuss the varying view points and create a group sentence (10 mins).
5. Groups share their sentences with the class (5 mins) and make sure a copy is saved to access later.
6. After studying the text, project the Wordle and the group sentences back on the board and discuss the accuracy of the Wordle and sentences (10-15 mins)
7. In groups or individually, students could, as a final project, create their own word cloud of the text (or keywords from the text) focusing this time on the size and placement of the words in relationship to how the words are connected to each other in the story. Instead of a random Wordle, students would create an intentional word cloud. Students would also include a written rationale or present their word cloud and rationale to the class.

Here is a sample Wordle based on the short story, "Priscilla and the Wimps" by Richard Peck. I start the year off with this story because I can introduce all skills needed for being successful in the class, scaffold it with other short stories taught, and align with NJ's Week of Respect that targets bullying prevention. This story is excellent for 9th graders who are just entering high school because, while it seems simple to understand, there is actually a complexity in the motif and theme of the story and a focus on conflict resolution.  Peck builds his entire story around the Biblical story of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, and allows for discussion of reliable narrators and how to resolve conflicts (or not to resolve conflicts). Themes presented in Peck's story are also found in Richard Connell's "The Most Dangerous Game" and Edgar Allan Poe's "The Cask of Amontillado"  --- two texts that challenge the students' comprehension and analysis skills.


Later in the year, I can use Wordles to facilitate in student understanding when we study poetry with Pygmalion and Shakespeare's sonnets and Romeo and Juliet in the 4th Marking Period. Students get discouraged when struggling with the language, but if the text is presented in a visually appealing word cloud that only uses the most frequently used words (and not all those thee's and thou's), they should gain an initial understanding of the poem's or soliloquy's themes and motifs.

This is a Wordle of Eliza Doolittle's final monologue to Professor Henry Higgins where she tries to explain her analysis of their relationship. Students can view this Wordle prior to reading George Bernard Shaw's play, Pygmalion, and complete the process above. Based on this Wordle, we can see that this monologue (and thereby the play) is focused on answering the question, what does a girl want? Here's the answer...

While Wordle is describes as a "toy" on their site, this "toy" could be used to facilitate the use of higher level thinking, writing, collaboration, and presentation skills.