Tech Integration IGNITE!

Visit the live agenda at bit.ly/2019techignite

We recently held our annual "IGNITE" day for ESU 8 teachers to spark new ideas for technology integration in their classrooms. The following is a summary of the learning we experienced to help us "launch" a great school year!

Wormhole Challenge

Our kick-off activity was using the new green screen feature in iMovie on iPad to create examples of the "Wormhole Challenge". You can read more about how to replicate this activity on this blog post. 

Apple 'Pop Up Classroom' Workbook

To demonstrate the possibilities of #EveryoneCanCreate with the built-in Apple apps on iPad, we worked through station activities shared at ISTE in Apple's "Pop-up Classroom" experience. Centered around a space theme, teachers were able to use a Pages workbook to try out drawing, photos, music, and augmented reality.  (Video and coding activities are also included in the workbook).  The entire resource was generously shared on the Apple Teacher Learning Center and you can download it too! Just look for the "Apple at ISTE 2019" tile.

• Drawing: Create a hand drawn note of a concept or idea involving the moon (in the Keynote or Pages app) and bring it life by adding line draw animation.
• Photos: Use the iPad camera's burst mode to capture a photo of a jump and then select a frame in midair. Use the markup feature to annotate and add a fact about weightlessness in outer space. 
• Music: Create a Garageband recording for voice and interview your "friend from outer space" about life on the moon. Use the voice filters to make your audio recording sound authentic!
• Augmented Reality (AR): Use the AR Makr app to create a 3D AR model of the earth, moon, and sun... and put it into motion!

 

ESU 8 Digital Resources

There are so many resources provided for educators through our ESU 8 Digital Resources that it is always worth a reminder! Molly presented a refresher and new features sharing about World Book online, Learn 360, SNAP to check out physical items through the Media Center, Virtual Field Trips (VFTs) and Zoom. 

Mission Control

During this portion of the workshop, we compared and contrasting two teaching tools to help you feel "in control" of your students' learning. We experienced a "getting to know you" lesson in the free versions of both ClassKick and Nearpod and then discussed differences, as well as times when both would be valuable. 

Teacher View of ClassKick lesson in progress.

Teacher View of Nearpod lesson overview.

Demo Slam

Finally, Molly and I went head-to-head with a Demo Slam, designed to showcase a few more tech tools in a fast-paced way. 

Goal-Setting

We concluded our IGNITE day by taking a look at our ESU 8 Tech Integration mission and then peruse some exemplars (including ISTE Standards, BlendED, BellevuePS ) to attempt to set individual professional goals for the upcoming school year. Don't forget that Katie and Molly would LOVE to come out to your classroom any time and assist with trying to reach those growth goals. 

One final activity...

...was one we used with West Holt teachers in their back-to-school Tech Ignite Day. It was to introduce EdPuzzle, by way of using EdPuzzle. You can check it out below. 

The Wormhole Challenge

Inspired by creative educators sharing their #WormholeChallenge creations on Twitter, ESU 8 educators got out a little green play doh and tried their own hand at magically revealing something via iMovie green screen capabilities.

While the green/blue screen feature is fairly new to iMovie on iPad, it has been a part of iMovie on Mac for some time. However, it is the approach to this simple green screen project that seems new.  Often we film in front of a stationary green background for effect. But in the Wormhole Challenge, you manipulate the green screen to reveal a pieces of a background a little at a time.

There are so many adaptations for this simple idea, but we used it as a simple ice breaker activity while working with groups of teachers in back-to-school PD. Here are the steps we used to accomplish the goal:

1) Use the built-in camera to record a video of your partner manipulating the green or blue play doh. Change sizes, placement, and even position further and closer to the iPad camera.

2) Open a new blank iMovie video project.

3) FIRST, add your background image (or video). In other words, what you plan to reveal.

4) SECOND, add your video of the hands manipulating the green blob.

• if using iPad: 

With your playhead at the beginning of your project, use the + to add the Video from your 'Recently Added' album. Once selected, use the ellipsis to select "Green/Blue Screen" from the options. Finally, don't forget to tap on the part of the video in the viewer that you want iMovie to "key" out (green, blue, or some other color you want to become invisible!).

• if using Mac:

Drag your green screen video clip just ABOVE your background clip in your timeline. Then, click the Video Overlay settings button and change the dropdown menu from 'Cutaway' to 'Green/Blue Screen'. That's it! iMovie will automatically find the green or blue color here. (You can, however, do some adjusting and editing if need be.)

Amazingly, that is all there is to it! No need for additional software, apps, or extensive editing experience. Now, what will you magically reveal in your next Wormhole Challenge project?

For even more #WormholeChallenge ideas, check out these curated tweets!