Create your own video slideshow at animoto.com.

Extra Credit Animoto Videos

Create your own video slideshow at animoto.com.

Digital Collection

I was amazed at how easy it was to use Picasa. Finally a site that just does what you need without having too many extras or missing any key needs of the user. What was wonderful is that I tested the site by embedding my collection into my blog with only four images in it, then uploaded the last one to see if Picasa, would in fact "update" my collection in my already embedded blog. And TADAAA! There the fifth image was. I am a huge fan of this and can really see having students use this in the classroom. I can imagine if students could work collaboratively on projects and be collecting images of their favorite artists throughout the whole semester it could be amazing. If each student collected an image a week based on either the projects we were doing in class or their own research and at the end we could share and view each classes joint slide show, well, WOW how easy it would be for students to do and what a large repertoire of images we could amass for future classes to see. Each year the new class of, for example, fifth grade students could view the digital collections of artworks that last years fifth grade students put together based on the artwork that they would be making throughout the year! In the same way I could photograph student work and keep an updated digital collection of it on my class website/blog so that parents and administrators could see up to date class assignments. How useful. I am definitely a fan.

Scavenger Hunt

I can easily see how this can be used in the classroom, however, i guess as with any project I feel it needs to be very carefully and specifically targeting at learning or enforcing something that has been learned. i fear that this could easily become a time-filler sort of project if a day or class period needed to be filled. All that said i could see sending stundets out into the community and having them document the art they see with school-loaned digital cameras and coming back and making this sort of presentation together. then i begin to think about the age-range of students this could be done with, too young and you can't send them into the school or community by themselves, too old and if it is njot a difficult task they may be bored or not take the assignment seriously. in the end though with a specific grade level in mind and a specific enough task, this could be a very fun way to reinforce the learning taking place in the classroom.

Digital Collection of Collage Art

WebQuests!

I personally can say that I had no idea what a WebQuest was before last Wednesday. Therefore with my unclouded hands on opinion of them I feel . . . that they have there place in the educational environment. They seem to be a great way to control internet content, guide students without having to state each direction, and to transmit information without lecturing. I feel this sort of self directed assignment would be great for giving students a change of pace from the regular day-to-day activities they experience in the classroom. Although i do see issues with maintaining focus with some students, or perhaps more of an issue with assessing their focus, because essentially a WebQuest looks like playing on the internet, while secretly being educational. In this case I really appreciate the idea of bringing in the group work aspect, to give a little peer pressure to the situation so that everyone has a a bit more incentive to thoroughly read and explore their WebQuest. I do also have a concern with using internet sources to teach standards-based education to students. Typically it is difficult to find good Art sources on the internet that are both reputable (which their are many) and also age appropriate (for which their are few). Apparently in the Art community no one ever mentioned that some parents don't appreciate students being able to view such images as a nude figure drawing on the internet, and in this case many of the best and most extensive collection on works contain many such artist's works. Although perhaps with proper linking and security blocks this situation may be a simple one to ratify. All in all i feel this is an interesting direction for self-directed learning to go in.

Wikis

Sigh.

Sadly, i am not quite yet convinced about their awesomeness. Yes, information does go up quick but I don't know how much I will ever really use them in the classroom. This may be where my lack of enthusiasm stems from. For many other classes besides Art the story is different, but in a classroom where I feel that if students aren't actually holding some sort of expressive creation making tool in their hand I'm wasting their time it doesn't yet clearly fit in my mental conception of my class. The future will tell.