WallWisher

If you want a different way of collaboratively sharing ideas, thoughts, and resources on a topic try WallWisher. It took me about 3 minutes to create a wall (here). You can post the URL on your blog, webpage or send it in an email. Visitors to your wall create "sticky notes" with up to 150 characters to address whatever topic you've written. It's a very graphical version of Twitter. You can embed photos to make it even more visual. (Illustration on this page shows a "polygons" wall.)




How could this be used?

• Post URLs
• Post assigned image searches
• Book reviews
• Favorites: authors, books websites, algebraic equations
• Create an "Honor Wall" for Veteran's Day, Memorial Day, President's Day
• Create a collaborative rubric for a project
• Use the wall as a suggestion box
• Chapter review
• Highlight accomplishments
• Brainstorming
• Class introductions - each sticky contains a photo and short bio
• Each student creates a wall based on a topic or theme
• Feedback, polling, voting
• Collaborative story writing
• Vocabulary - students brainstorm words based on a theme
• Quiz - record a quiz and stick an .mp3 in a sticky note
• Quiz - use one sticky note for each question
• Movable magnets - move stickies to rank, order, match, create timeline

Okay, Jim Phelps (yes, I'm old!) here's your assignment if you choose to accept: Go to my wall and fill out a sticky. Use your real name (I can see the hamster spinning on the wheel in your heads, people!!) so I know who visited. Thanks and have fun!!!

Prezi

I found "Prezi" (http://prezi.com) as a suggested Web 2.0 tool. Wow! Am I impressed! It's PowerPoint on steroids! I think we're PowerPoint-ed to death. How many meetings have you attended where you had the presenter READ THE SLIDES to you?!! (pet peeve of mine, obviously.) And those themes! Man, I want to strangle the person who uses dark type on a dark PowerPoint theme.

PowerPoint is linear whereas Prezi is multidimensional. It zooms and twists and turns. (Why, if you set it up right, I bet you could even make your audience puke! How fun is that?!!) I think you can embed Prezi-ntations into your blogs. Haven't tried it.. may just do that eventually as I get the hang of this blogging thing.

It's easy to insert/embed video (YouTube clips!), sound, and graphics. Try it. I think you'll enjoy working with it. I'd suggest transforming an existing PowerPoint presentation. Next time you have to give a presentation, give a Prezi-ntation! (No, they didn't hire me nor pay me and I realize that last statement was pretty lame but ya gotta end these things so you don't just keep rambling and rambling and........

Alpha, really?

Alpha. Yup. The beginning...as in my first blog. I'm a technology coordinator, for crying out loud and this is really my FIRST blog? Yes *hanging head in shame*. Why am I doing this? I'm doing this because I get brain picking questions and I have a passion for all things geek.

Geek? Isn't that a nerd, dork, undesirable-type person? Nope. Not any more. Being called a geek is now a compliment...and I are one, kinda. I have geekier friends who know everything about everything. (Buy lunch for those people. They're invaluable!) My passion shows up when I see "geek stuff". I'm a gadgets person, whether it's software, devices, whatever.

Okay, I digressed...back to why I'm doing this. I've found a lot of cool stuff online. Instead of constantly emailing continuously about whatever I find, I want a repository (as opposed to SUPpository, people...c'mon, I mean, really...) of websites and info that I think others might find valuable. So, hold on...here goes!!