a partner for digital writing - Popplet

Common Core State Standards ~ Writing Standard #6

~ Kindergarten-2nd Grade - With guidance and support from adults, explore a variety of digital tools to produce and publish writing, including in collaboration with peers.

~ 3rd Grade - With guidance and support from adults, use technology to produce and publish writing (using keyboarding skills) as well as to interact and collaborate with others.

~ 4th Grade - ....demonstrate sufficient command of keyboarding skills to type a minimum of one page in a single sitting.

When you read this standard, there are a few words that stand out most teachers are not 100% comfortable with - digital tools, technology, collaboration/collaborate, keyboarding. Popplet is one of many web resources teachers can use to help address those uncomfortable, techie words!


Popplet is a web resource that allows the user to create a graphic organizer/thinking map/bubble map. Popplet has a free and paid edition.  I currently use the free edition, and love the potential!

First things first, you need to create an account.  Once the account is created, you can start make your first Popplet. When you make a new Popplet, you will need to provide a title and select its background color.

       

You will start off with a blank screen, which is great because you have a blank canvas to work with! The bubble within Popplet are called Popples. These can be made by either double clicking on the screen or selecting "new popple" found under the tools icon.

Each popple can be moved by simply clicking and dragging. You can also increase and decrease the size of the popple.

A popple can include typed text, an image/video from either the web or your computer, or a drawing. You can also change the color of the popple. These four options are located on the bottom. The upper right corner provides a place for comments related to the popplet and the four gray circles will create and connect a new popplet.

Do you notice my name in the upper left corner? This is because I made the popple using my account.  You can invite other users to join this Popplet. This will allow for collaboration among multiple users on one "document".

    

I have just touched the surface of what Popplet can do!  Below are the other options until the tools icon.  Popplets can be printed, exported, viewed full screen, etc!

Do you already use Popplet?  Share your thoughts and ideas!

mobile learning on mobile devices - Infuse Learning

So far I have talked about two mobile learning resources, Kahoot and Socrative. The third resource I have recently learned about is Infuse Learning.

I first heard about Infuse Learning at ISTE 2013 and then again at FETC 2014.  I figured it was time for me to check it out!

Infuse Learning is a cross platform assessment platform for teachers and students. To start, teachers create a free account at www.infuselearning.com. Once the account is created, teachers could start with on the fly questions or dive in a little more with creating assessments and classes.

Lets go back to the account creation. Once created, you will see this screen...

The enrollment type for my session is open. In order for students to join, they go to student.infuselearning.com on any device that has Internet access. The screen will prompt the student to enter the Room ID (located on the upper left corner) and their name.

The Quick Assessment question types are what I call "on the fly" questions. You can ask these at any point during a lesson or activity. These do not require any prep before hand, hence the name.

For example, if you were to ask a multiple choice question, the students would see this on their device's screen.

 Notice, there are no answers next to the multiple choice options. The students either have something in front of them or something was asked verbally.

The other Quick Assessments include:
- Draw Response - The students can draw their answer and submit it.
- True/False - The students can select true, false, or don't know.
- Multiple Choice - The students can select from a section, depending on how the teacher creates it.
- Sort in Order - The students can place multiple items in order, depending on how the teacher creates it.
- Open Ended Text Answer - The students type in their answer.
- Numeric - The students type in a number answer.
- Likert Scale - The students select depending on how the teacher creates it.

If you want a more formal assessment, you can create a quiz within quiz management.

There is more to Infuse Learning than I have talked about, so if these features excite you then I encourage you to check it out!