PE_5_VoiceThread

What came first, the tooth or the thread?

We started showing the films of our outdoor provocations to our students this week. I have recorded some responses and they will be shown as prompt clips for our future voice threads.

All hope is not lost since the district shut me down.

Today I learned that my iPhone can record mp3's of children talking and that VoiceThread will allow the upload of those if one has the "pro" version.

No-brainer = I'm going PRO. Cost 60 dollars; parental involvement, priceless.

Here is a short VoiceThread of one of my students. His name is Kentaro. His father is Canadian and his mother is Japanese. I posted his image and as they were the first to respond to connecting via VoiceThread, I asked that their family record both a video response and an audio response to the thread.

The photo is an image I made right after Kentaro lost his first tooth. Unfortunately, he lost it on the playground and as our playground is covered in sand (this is Saudi Arabia after all) well, there was no hope of ever finding his tooth. We tried though.

Two weeks later Kentaro lost another tooth and then misplaced it as well. Before our December holiday, Ken was convinced that the tooth fairy and Santa were going to discuss how he'd carelessly lost the tooth and that Santa wouldn't be bringing any presents for him. I can't make this stuff up. Don't you love 5 year olds?

Shortly after our return from holiday, Ken had nearly forgotten that he'd lost any teeth at all. The following VoiceThread offers a gentle reminder of the event, which was something to be celebrated and not to be fretted over. The continued return to the thread will solidify the memory via a rehearsal loop. Really, how many of us can remember loosing our first tooth?

When I showed the VoiceThread to our two classes of Kindergarten students they all began to discuss lost teeth, teeth not lost yet, trips to the dentist and the joys and perils of eating candy. Had we been able to record all these discussions (see PE_4_VoiceThread) this thread would have several more postings. Still, we're working a way around that and as more parents sign on, there will be some valuable webcam postings from home!

I send out a personal word of thanks to the Barnes' family for letting me share this screen capture of our first VoiceThread conversation.

PE_4_VoiceThread

Little voice met with resounding "no!"

After sending home some initial feelers to my parents about using VoiceThread (VT) in the classroom, I've received my first enthusiastic response! A parent has taken the initiative, "I suppose what we should do now is set up an account and then send an inquiry to you?"

I'm thrilled!

My journey to implement VT as a tool for reflective practice reminds me of waiting in line for an incredible amusement park ride. Picture me in line; all these expectations running through my head, I've really built this ride up = somehow the endless zigzag in the summer heat will be worth the two minutes of whoopeeeeee! However; I'm concerned as I watch the tough guy with tattoos and bulging muscles turn, the words this ride is too scary for me whisper from between the furrows of his brow. Naturally the latter image is a metaphor for a co-worker of mine; someone who has been teaching for a long time, looking at the site and trying to work out how he will fit it all in . I've had this conversation before, I think. I want to scream "yep, I knew it all along you ARE too short to ride this thing!"

I know some other younger, more stealth version of myself has had the same thoughts about me, so I try hard not to judge. Unfortunately, this gavel must be magnetic or something; I can't seem to get rid of the thing. But I digress.

Made loads of progress this week with the RILS project. I'm happy to say that I've learned some things and also realized that you don't always get what you want. Appropriate that the girl who fixated on (VT) using Wiley Coyote is now serenaded by the Stones. Oh, if only I had my Principal under my thumb?

Today the official "decree" that VT will not be a tool that the district will support us with came down. The reasoning: the cam and mic are controlled by VT and not by our mothership. (Raspberry sound.) Worse when we try to use a cam or mic for recording student reflections, there is black air - literally, the screen goes black = blockage.

I will figure a way around this! I am invincible, I am woman....if you are singing along you're old AND cool, who knew it was possible? Certainly not me BB (Before Blogging not King.)

BP_4_Voicethread

I have been looking for the perfect tool for my students to use to reflect on their recent outdoor-play provocations. This is always a bit of a "sticky bicket" (as my Brit friend says) considering the people I want to do the reflections are at best role-play writing. I've been asking myself; would my kids type or perhaps write/scribble with a pen on the IWB to an up-loadable bulletin board? Have you ever seen second language learner Kindergarteners type? Picture Mr. McGoo hunting and pecking while immersed in molasses. It's all about the squinting and the speed (i.e. reverse.)

But I digress. I think I've found the perfect Web 2.0 tool and can't wait to get my kids using it. It is called voicethread. After a couple of tutorials, I ran to the tech admin at our school to talk about getting our kids accounts so that we can get started. He is checking on the site license right now. Yes!

So what is it?

“A VoiceThread is a collaborative, multimedia slide show that holds images, documents, and videos and allows people to navigate slides and leave comments in 5 ways.”

You can use your microphone or a telephone and leave voice comments on someone’s video. But the fun doesn’t stop there; you can leave text, audio or video comments and then share your images, video or your comments on someone else’s video with your friends. Then they can comment as well.

The tutorials are super user friendly, even I can get it. Now if I can just upload my videos, you too will be amazed.

This movie was a capture made with Telestream's Screenflow of a tutorial on the voicethread site. You can watch it yourself at http://voicethread.com/about/features/sharing/

This naturally was the first "feature" that I was interested in watching a tutorial of as yesterday's fiasco with the 12 hour upload was not a feature that I was interested in repeating. I'm thinking super easy, let's watch more. I really like the way the tutor used the yellow pencil to highlight areas of his screen. I see something in the sidebar called "doodling" and think, I want to be able to do that. I then watch the following tutorial for "doodling" but still never get where he actually picks up the pencil. There is no button but I do learn how to pause and play a video. I then spent way to much time pondering the significance of the fact that the subject of their tutorial is Wiley Coyote a.k.a. "Super Genius" and also my profile pic on Facebook.

"I'm sure that the universe conspired to bring me to this site!" - she said to herself.

Anyway, I will show you this next blip and you'll see what an "collaborative multi-media slide show" really is...oh and if you see where he gets the doodling pencil, let me know. This S.G. is on the way to making a voice thread of her own.

PE_1_iMovie

It started with a provocation.  The oh so popular term "provocation" that all early childhood teachers worth their salt are throwing around these days. Can't you hear us?  We are galavanting about the playground, twisting up our pearls with one finger, martini surrounded by the others a la Thurston and Lovey Howell all the while going on about our bloody provocations? 

I promise, I harbor no ill will toward this word, moreover the pedagogy surrounding it.  It is just that the word itself, like "unpacking" has become so prevalent in Early Childhood vernacular that I've got the same nausea that I felt for Michael Jackson's "Beat It" when it was in it's 45th week on the top 40, you know?   

For those of you who teach adults or children whose eyes are above your navel;  a provocation quite simply is an object or situation that provokes.

Our Provocation

At end of last week, my teaching partner and I put some vacuum tubes, dryer hoses and large PVC pipes out on the playground.  We then sat down to ponder what we thought our children might do upon encountering said provocation and then armed ourselves with cameras.

These next three posts (i.e., PE_1_iMovie through PE_3_iMovie)  will be my documentation of the dialogue with materials that our children were having and the resultant "Professional Learning Community" ...drumroll...provocation that our teaching team proposed to our boss.  

These posts will also be about how I stayed up all night once again to complete an assignment for school whilst being driven absolutely mad by iMovie. 

BP_3_iGoogleScreenShots

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As is often the case in these days of wine and jet-lag, my eyes flew open an hour ago despite the fact that NO indicators were present at the time of their untimely interruption to my slumber (i.e. dawn light or frequent feral cat visitor who often stalks my kitten in the wee hours.)  

So, I got up and glanced at the clock on the stove to see the time, "What? Already?" I said to myself as I scrambled over the baggage from trip.  Two days and I've still only managed to unpack two of the three cases and have yet to manage to remove them from path to toilet, does it ever end?  Ouch! My shin is going to curse me tomorrow.  I'm stressed, it is nearly time for school and I've yet to turn in today's screen shots because I fell into a coma after yesterday's 24 plus hours of sleeplessness compounded by birthday celebration with my favorite..."home brew."  Have I extolled the virtues of living in a DRY country?  I don't mean the desert. 

I grind some beans and hobble to the  loo, the smell of Amungme Gold (coffee) slaps some sense into my crippled self. As I reach back to grab a mug I focus on the clock on the stove again.  It's 9:45PM (same day I went to bed at 7PM)...not 5:45AM next day. 

I've got to call that Doctor who performed my Lasik surgery.  So here at last...my screen shots.  I'm still struggling with two of the required apps (suspecting Saudi cyber-cops) but hey, this too shall pass.

Any suggestions for how to go back to sleep when you've pounded three cups of coffee at 10PM?