Immersive Picture Environments

If yous bask working alongside images alongside your EFL students, specially on an IWB (interactive whiteboard) or a information projector, thus PicLens is just what yous need.

PicLens is a plugin (small program) that plant inside your spider web browser (there are versions for Firefox, Safari in addition to IE 7) in addition to it converts many of the measure icon sharing websites, similar flickr, Photobucket, Google Images, Yahoo Images etc. into "3D immersive environments"!

To sympathise what that hateful conduct keep a aspect at this brusk flash video tutorial which shows how to role PicLens.

Click here or on the icon to persuasion the painting exhibit (5Mb Flash)
OR
Download a version of this painting exhibit for i-pod / i-tunes here

At the click of the mouse the normal 2D spider web pages are converted into a wall of images which yous tin explore in addition to enlarge.

How to role this alongside ELT students on your information projector or IWB

• Pull upwards a wall of images in addition to pull i field your students endeavour to justice which i it is. Then larn a pupil to pull an icon in addition to the others justice which one. (This volition operate best alongside quite similar images). You tin thus larn students to exercise this inward pairs.
  
• Type inward a search term in addition to inquire students to pull the connectedness / relevance of the icon to the term (This plant best when yous larn inward abstract nouns similar politics, alienation, paranoia etc.)
• Use the resources for whatever novel vocabulary words that come upwards up inward your lesson. Simply collect the words, type them inward in addition to detect images that relate to the word. (This won't operate for every word)
• Get students to compare in addition to contrast 2 images (A mutual chore inward EFL exams such equally FCE)
• Play simply a infinitesimal in addition to conduct an icon for each student, they thus conduct keep to beak for i infinitesimal most that icon alongside repeating them selves or pausing (This is hard to do, thus don't aspect besides much) honour points for the pupil who manages to speak for the longest.
• Put students alongside their dorsum to the images, conduct i in addition to the other students (in 2 teams or groups) conduct keep to pull the icon to the pupil who can't meet it. The pupil thus has to justice which icon they described.
• Pull upwards a unmarried icon in addition to inquire students to mean value most the photographer's intention.
  
• Why did the lensman accept the image?
  
• What did they desire to say?
  
• What is their human relationship to the icon content?
  
• What were they doing before, afterwards they took the image?
  
• Etc etc.
• Students tin conduct their favourite icon in addition to explicate why they similar it, or the i they similar least.
• Students tin endeavour to role their imagination to pull the infinite around the icon that yous don't see.
  
• What's happening around the lensman that yous don't see?
  
• What is the lensman wearing?
  
• What's happening behind the photographer?
• Describe the lensman (age, gender, nationality, personality etc.)
  

What I similar most it

• The Plugin is gratis in addition to real uncomplicated to download in addition to install in addition to less than 2 Mb
• The interface is actually slowly to role in addition to real attractive
• It actually highlights the images in addition to frees thus from the textual distraction that yous oftentimes detect on a spider web page
• There's no advertising on it
• You larn access to some actually fantastic images inward bird without having to download them or violate anyone's copyright
• The most recent version also enables yous to exercise immersive walls of videos from YouTube !!! Fantastic!
  

What I'm non thus certain about

• As alongside whatever icon sharing / search depository fiscal establishment yous conduct keep to endure careful alongside younger students that inappropriate images don't appear. You tin larn around this though yesteryear setting upwards your ain delineate concern human relationship on something similar Flickr and alone using specific images from your account. This could endure fourth dimension consuming, but if yous got other teachers in addition to students to help, it could endure a fantastic resource.
• If yous are on a irksome connectedness it could accept a fighting longer for the images to load.

If yous desire to role PicLens thus yous tin download it from here:

• Version for Internet Explorer 7
• Version for Safari 2 + 3.0
• Version for Firefox

This is a actually smashing tool for the connected ELT classroom in addition to also smashing to role at home. I promise yous are able to bask using it alongside your students. Do drib me a lne alongside whatever other ideas in addition to activities yous role alongside it.

Best

Nik

Make Your Efl Esl Yearbook

As e'er I'm a fool for technology scientific discipline which tin brand images entertaining too personalise them, too hence when I saw this I couldn't resist it.

Personalised flashcards

Animating vocabulary

A Picture's worth

Manga images for EFL ESL

Best

Nik Peachey

Using Online Mucilaginous Noticeboards

For the final few days I've been playing amongst Create Image Books

Create a Flickr Montage

Great Time Line Tool

Create a YouTube Carousel

Interactive presentations

Personalised flashcards

Animating vocabulary

A Picture's worth

80 + Online activities for students

Best

Nik Peachey

20 Webcam Activities For Efl Esl Students

Back inward Nov 2008 I published Part 1 of a serial of articles intended to explore the usage of WebCams inward education. I accept straight off finally got circular to writing Part ii which is a collection of xx activities EFL ESL teachers tin do amongst their students.

Here are to a greater extent than or less links to useful gratuitous video communication tools that you lot could usage for these activities.

• MailVu is a uncomplicated to usage app which runs inward the browser in addition to enables students to tape a brusque message which tin live on sent yesteryear email.
• EyeJot is to a greater extent than or less other uncomplicated video electronic mail app which also has a mobile version.
• Skype is of course of instruction the mainstream selection for synchronous communication.
• Oovoo is a Skype challenger which also enables the recording of video interviews yesteryear capturing both interviewer in addition to interviewee.

I desire this ebook

xx WebCam Activities

1. Chinese - video dictation - whispers - Use the video electronic mail characteristic to tape a brusque text. Send it to the outset of your students. Ask your pupil to write downward the message in addition to and thus tape it themselves in addition to send it to the side yesteryear side student. Each pupil should rerecord in addition to send the message on to another, until the in conclusion pupil sends it dorsum to you. You volition in addition to thus encounter how accurately the message matches to your master copy text.


2. Interactive video learning diary - You could acquire students to do an interactive learning diary, they could electronic mail you lot their video summary of what they experience they accept learned each 24-hour interval in addition to you lot could in addition to thus respond. The videos would cast a goodness learning tape in addition to students volition live on able to expect dorsum at them afterwards in addition to encounter how they accept improved - quite literally - in addition to also listen the improvements inward their speaking ability. This is also a corking way to plough over your students one-to-one-time which tin oft live on a employment inward class.



3. Class survey - Action research - You could send a video message to your students amongst a course of instruction survey enquiry that they could respond to. This would live on a goodness way to send out classroom research, determine on learning goals in addition to brand certain that all students had a way to feedback to you lot inward private in addition to on an private basis.

 They could also do their ain questions in addition to send them to each other, in addition to thus feedback inward class.

4. The witness - Show one-half of your students a video clip or picture, that includes a issue of people (scenes from films amongst depository fiscal establishment robberies, where a issue of people are involved are quite useful for this). Then enquire the students to imagine that they are 1 of the people inward the celluloid or painting in addition to they quest to depict what happened. Ask them to tape a video contestation giving their concern human relationship of what happened inward the outset person. You tin in addition to thus enquire the other students to imagine they are detectives in addition to sentry the clips your students accept created in addition to brand notes to slice together what happened. Afterwards they tin sentry the master copy celluloid clip together inward course of instruction in addition to you lot tin encounter how good they did in addition to what they missed.

 Here's an event depository fiscal establishment robbery scene

• Bank robbery - The Young Ones - BBC comedy


5. Favourite poems or haiku - Students could tape themselves reading their favourite verse form or haiku, you lot could in addition to thus embed the videos into a spider web page or weblog equally a course of instruction poesy collection.


6. Video twitter - Using the feed characteristic you lot could do a sort of video Twitter, amongst your students video micro-blogging close learning English, their 24-hour interval at school, or whatsoever theme they divulge interesting.


7. Text in addition to video fault correction - Using the video electronic mail feature, you lot could tape a video of yourself reading a text, in addition to thus add together the text inside the electronic mail message. You could include to a greater extent than or less errors inward the text in addition to acquire them to sentry the video in addition to right the errors.


8. Create a collaborative story - Email students a video amongst the outset employment of a floor in addition to enquire them to tape your employment of the floor in addition to add together their own, in addition to thus operate yesteryear it back, or operate yesteryear it on to to a greater extent than or less other student. This way you lot could ready upward a floor betwixt the grouping over a menstruum of time.


9. Tip of the day - Send you lot students a learning tip each 24-hour interval yesteryear video email. These could live on examine tips, study tips, recommended website etc.(The URL for the website would look inward the text purpose of the message below the video.)

10. Video dictation - Send a video electronic mail of yourself dictating a text in addition to enquire your students to sentry in addition to write the text inward the electronic mail in addition to send it dorsum to you lot for correction.


11. Vocabulary tape / give-and-take of the day - You could enquire your students to do a video to tape the words in addition to event sentences. You could also do something similar this yourself equally a sort of 'Word of the Day' channel.


12. News Reports - Ask students to read the intelligence ( inward English linguistic communication or their ain outset language) in addition to and thus gain a video intelligence written report on 1 of the principal stories that they are interested in.
 They could also do their ain local or schoolhouse video intelligence channel for other students to subscribe to.

13. Present continuous (sound on or off) - You tin tape video clips to demonstrate introduce continuous sentences. You tin do this amongst audio on or amongst audio off in addition to the students tin estimate the sentence
.

14. Questions for response - You could gear upward clips amongst questions in addition to enquire your students to respond online. They could also gear upward a sequence of their ain questions for other students to respond to.


15. Guess the object - You or students could tape a description of in addition to object in addition to viewers accept to brain in addition to estimate what the object is. Getting students to do these clips volition assistance them to live on concise in addition to actually position the telephone substitution concepts behind describing objects.


16. Sales pitch - Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 variation on the thought inward a higher position is to enquire students to gain a video trying to convince users to purchase a item object. Again this helps them to position telephone substitution concepts, gives them exercise amongst using linguistic communication of view in addition to it may good assistance them to force for faster speaking speeds in addition to meliorate fluency.


17. Moods - You tin do video clips of yourself or your students expressing dissimilar moods. This tin assistance them to larn the vocabulary of the moods, but you lot could also usage it to acquire students to predict the displace of the mood ( in addition to exercise introduce perfect; "He's angry because he has only been made redundant." etc.)

18. Live tutoring support - Video conferencing is an ideal tool for supporting distance learners in addition to doing 'face to face' tutorials.


19. Video interviews - You could acquire far acquit upon amongst someone for your course of instruction to interview. Just accept 1 reckoner addition photographic tv set camera gear upward inward class, in addition to a visiting expert, friend or colleague on the other halt for your students to interview. They could also interview an adept inward groups from habitation amongst a conference call.
 The interview doesn't accept to live on done 'live' it could also live on done through a serial of electronic mail video messages sent to the interviewee.You tin endeavor it hither yesteryear watching this video in addition to and thus clicking reply.

20. Video lesson amongst conferencing - You could usage the conference telephone telephone to videocast your lesson or presentation to a grouping of distance learners.


I promise you lot divulge these suggestions useful in addition to care to usage to a greater extent than or less of them amongst your students. Do driblet me a employment if you lot accept other recommendations for useful video conferencing tools or activities. You tin divulge to a greater extent than video related activities for EFL ESL here.

Related links:

• Very Easy Video Conferencing
• Online Video: As Communication
• Sending Bubble Joy to your EFL / ESL Students
• Great Video Commenting Tool
• Video conferencing for EFL
• Send Free Video Messages

Best

Nik Peachey

Using Wise Quotes Alongside Efl Esl Students

I've ever flora wise (and sometimes non in addition to hence wise) quotes actually useful, both inside the classroom amongst students in addition to every bit a mode of introducing a theme when writing materials. I've used lots of dissimilar websites to honor quotes over the years, simply Get the News Through Images

Adventure Narratives for EFL ESL Students

Exploiting 2 computer-based RPGs

Exploiting Travel Images

Art Photography every bit a Basis for Language Activities

Create Image Books

A Picture's worth

Picture phrases

Best

Nik Peachey

Cropping Youtube Videos To Practise Activities

Using YouTube videos amongst students tin endure actually great, but finding a video amongst the exact linguistic communication yous desire together with at a suitable length amongst every bit good many other distractions around tin endure actually difficult. That's why SafeShare.TV is therefore useful.

• SafeShare.TV is a tool that has ii principal functions. The foremost is to enable yous to percentage YouTube videos using a right away URL that frames the video without the advertising together with other distracting features that mightiness travail students to wander off into less suitable materials.
• The bit together with possibly fifty-fifty to a greater extent than useful role of SafeShare.TV is that it enable yous to crop the video clip therefore that exclusively a detail component subdivision is shown. This is especially useful when yous desire to gear upward activities or tasks around clips that focus students on detail linguistic features.

Find out more

How to job SafeShare.TV
First respect a YouTube clip that has a department that yous would similar to use. I chose this i from ‘Room amongst a View’ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tehft3GDw6k. At ix mins it's quite long therefore I simply wanted to job a few sections.
Copy the URL together with and therefore teach to: http://www.safeshare.tv/. Paste the link into the plain together with therefore click on ‘Generate rubber link’.
This volition create a novel link to the video which yous tin together with therefore job amongst your students to present them the clip.
When the students opened upward the link they volition exclusively run across the unmarried video clip amongst it’s title, similar the instance below.

If yous desire to crop the clip therefore that exclusively a brusk component subdivision of it shows, together with therefore generate your rubber URL together with and therefore click on the link that says 'Do yous desire to exclusively percentage a component subdivision of the video? click to crop.' This volition opened upward a small-scale video viewer. Click the video to picket it, together with therefore click on ‘Set Start’ at the showtime of the segment yous desire students to see. Watch the segment together with click ‘Set End’ at the destination of the segment. Now click ‘OK’

Once yous bring clicked 'OK' your rubber link volition endure adapted to exclusively present the department of the video yous bring selected. You tin together with therefore either re-create the link to percentage amongst students or percentage it through a diversity of social networking mediums.


Here's a quick video tutorial showing how to practice this.
You tin download this video here or download a re-create for i-Touch or i-Phone here How tin nosotros job this amongst students? Clipping videos makes it much easier for us to create activities together with tasks that focus on specific areas of the video clip without having to picket the whole thing.

• You tin choose instance phrases to present the job of linguistic communication inward context, such every bit a telephone telephone telephone or a scene that shows mortal booking into a hotel etc.
  Here’s an example: Booking a hotel room This was trimmed from a much longer clip on YouTube
• You tin present students the showtime to a clip together with inquire them to predict what’s ‘going to’ hap next.
  
  Here are ii examples:
  1. What's going to happen?
  2. What's going to happen?

• You tin present the showtime together with destination of a clip together with inquire students to predict what ‘has happened’ inward between.
  
  Example:
  They picket this one
  Then this one

• You tin present students a expose of sections from the same clip together with inquire them to social club them either past times using linguistic or visual clues together with explicate their rationale.
  
  Here are v clips for yous to travail to order:
  Clip 1
  Clip 2
  Clip 3
  Clip 4
  Clip 5

• You tin present each pupil inward a grouping a dissimilar sections of the clip (like the v sections above) together with and therefore inquire them to piece of work together to depict the component subdivision they watched together with seat the dissimilar sections into the right social club every bit a group.
• You tin job the sections to focus on the job of specific structures, similar this i for ‘should have’ Should bring clip or this i for the job of 3rd conditional 3rd conditional clip
• At the destination of these types of activities yous tin present them the consummate clip. http://www.safeshare.tv/v/Tehft3GDw6k

What I similar almost it

• It’s complimentary together with slow to use
• It gets your students right to the component subdivision of the video yous desire them to see
• It allows yous to easily divide videos into shorter clips
• there’s a elementary ‘bookmarklet’ that yous tin drag to your favourites bar, together with therefore whenever yous respect a YouTube clip your desire to job yous simply click on it to teach the SafeShare.TV link.

What I’m non therefore certain about

• Sometimes it doesn’t piece of work on my MAC
• It would endure corking to bring an embed code every bit good every bit a URL

Well those are some suggestions to teach yous started cropping YouTube videos. I promise yous respect them useful. You tin respect 25 to a greater extent than video related activities for EFL together with ESL students here. Related links:

• Quick Twitter Video Activity
• 20 WebCam Activities for EFL ESL Students
• Sending Bubble Joy to your EFL / ESL Students
• Microblogging for EFL amongst Plurk
• Great Video Commenting Tool
• Video conferencing for EFL
• Send Free Video Messages
• Animated Music Videos for EFL
• Creating multimedia stories
• 12 Second Video Clips for EFL ESL
• Tutorial: Using Videos from YouTube
• Great Video Commenting Tool

Best Nik Peachey

10 Tools For Increasing Appointment Inward Online Courses

Over the final few years I've done a lot of travel developing writing together with redeveloping online courses together with course of teaching materials. In the initial rush to acquire learning online many organisations got themselves a Moodle platform together with and thus attached a whole charge of PDFs together with .docs, added some forums together with the strange video clip together with called it an online course. It's no surprise together with thus that drib out rates for online learning courses direct maintain been thus high.

The advent of Web 2.0 though, brought a whole bunch of novel tools that course of teaching designers could direct maintain payoff of to brand content to a greater extent than social, interactive together with engaging.

Here are some of the tools I've been using of late to embed a fleck to a greater extent than interactivity into the courses I travel on.

Storify - http://storify.com

Storify is a nifty tool for collecting together  a mixture of spider web based resources together with references into a spider web based widget that yous tin give the axe together with thus construction into a digital inquiry paper. You tin give the axe easily clitoris inward comments from Facebook, Twitter or Google searches equally good equally a make of other social media sources. You together with thus add together blocks amongst your ain commentary together with reflections. The whole affair tin give the axe together with thus live on embedded into a webpage. This is a nifty tool for developing digital literacy together with referencing online sources.

• Here's an instance of a Storify text designed to percentage information almost Wordle.

Tricider - http://tricider.com

Tricider is a nifty tool for crowd sourcing opinion. You kickoff amongst a unmarried query employment together with and thus yous or your students tin give the axe add together possible solutions to the problem. Students tin give the axe also add together some pros together with cons to the solutions together with vote on the ones they prefer. These tin give the axe live on embedded into webpages together with tin give the axe give far to a greater extent than construction to online give-and-take than things similar threaded forums which oftentimes acquire garbled together with confusing.

• Here's an instance discussing the pros together with cons of Moodle (Feel gratis to participate)

Urtak - https://urtak.com

You tin give the axe role Urtak to exercise elementary social questionnaires for your courses. Although the responses are quite express (Yes / No / Don't care) This tin give the axe nevertheless live on a useful tool for quick straw polls earlier developing deeper give-and-take through a forum. It also give students the run a jeopardy to compare their opinions anonymously amongst those of classmates together with also add together their ain questions to the questionnaire. The questionnaires tin give the axe also live on embedded into spider web pages together with materials.

• Here's an instance of a questionnaire almost Education Today

Intervue.me - http://intervue.me

This is also a tool for creating questionnaires, but inward the instance of Intervue.me the questions tin give the axe live on opened upward ended together with the respondent leaves their reply verbally using a spider web cam. Intervue.me can't live on embedded into pages , but yous tin give the axe link to your questionnaires together with yous tin give the axe download the video clips of the answers equally mp4 thus yous tin give the axe together with thus role these inward materials yous develop together with equally the footing for farther discussion.

• Here is an instance of a questionnaire asking teachers almost their role of technology

VYou - http://vyou.com/

You tin give the axe role Vyou embed a video booth that students tin give the axe perish at whatever fourth dimension of hateful solar daytime to enquire yous questions. The video booth gives the impression that yous are e'er available together with builds some presence on your course. The messages students ship yous are delivered to an inbox together with yous are notified thus that yous tin give the axe reply them. Vyou also has a rattling handy mobile app thus yous tin give the axe reply the questions where ever yous are on your iPhone or other mobile device.

• Here's an instance of my ain Vyou Q & H5N1 page on this blog

Keek - http://www.keek.com/

It's a expert thought to acquire students to proceed a learning periodical on whatever course of teaching they do. It tin give the axe experience a fleck tiresome though writing periodical entries to yourself, thus why non acquire educatee to exercise a video based learning periodical using Keek. They tin give the axe add together entries each hateful solar daytime merely using a spider web cam together with microphone together with yous tin give the axe acquire out video comments on their entries. Students on your course of teaching tin give the axe also live on encouraged to 'follow' each other. Individual entries tin give the axe also live on embedded into spider web pages which tin give the axe enable yous to construct pages that percentage insights from your course of teaching participants. Keek also has a gratis mobile app that allows yous to upward appointment from mobile devices such equally iPhone.

• Here yous tin give the axe encounter some examples from Keek users

Bundlr - http://gobundlr.com/

This is a genuinely useful tool for sharing theme based collections of bookmarks. It creates a rattling visual tape of the mass marked links which yous tin give the axe together with thus embed into your course of teaching pages equally widgets. This tin give the axe live on a genuinely useful tool for setting inquiry tasks based roughly a grouping of online resources.

• Here yous tin give the axe encounter a package of links relating to digital storytelling

Zooshia - http://zooshia.com/

Zooshia is a handy tool for creating widgets from social network sources that tin give the axe live on embedded into spider web pages. The widgets present a dynamic flow from whatever rootage nosotros select. This tin give the axe brand suggestions for twitter or facebook people to follow much to a greater extent than informative together with tin give the axe also permit yous to embed dynamic widgets from YouTube channels which volition brand your content much to a greater extent than dynamic too.

• Here is a widget I embedded into my weblog showing the postings to my Facebook page

Present.Me - http://present.me/

Present.Me  tin give the axe assistance yous exercise online presentations from your PowerPoint slides. You tin give the axe together with thus add together your talking caput commentary to your slides together with embed the whole affair into your online course. This industrial plant good equally a lecture replacement together with having a presenter that yous tin give the axe genuinely encounter along side your slides tin give the axe assistance add together to the engagement amongst your learners. You tin give the axe embed this into your page together with construct a forum roughly it for follow upward discussion.

• Here yous tin give the axe encounter a useful serial of presentations showing yous how to exercise a expert presentation

Goanimate - http://goanimate.com
 

Online course of teaching content tin give the axe acquire rattling dry out together with serious, thus why non spice it upward yesteryear creating a few animations using something similar GoAnimate. It's a an slow tool for creating curt animated dialogues that tin give the axe live on exported equally video clips together with embedded into your course. You tin give the axe role these to innovate topics or heighten issues for farther debate.

• Here yous tin give the axe encounter a alternative of channels that direct maintain been developed using animation

I promise these 10 tools together with the links from them direct maintain given yous a few ideas into how yous tin give the axe spice upward your online courses together with brand them to a greater extent than engaging together with enjoyable together with assistance yous to retain students. Please acquire out a comment if yous direct maintain suggestions for other gratis tools yous direct maintain flora useful for developing online content.

Related links:

• 10 Tech Tools for Teacher Training Courses
• 3 Tools for Exploiting the Wifi During Presentations
• Crowdsourcing Knowledge amongst Students
• Create a Video Q&A Booth
• So Ask Me a Question
• Create Video Questionnaires
• Creating Social Polls together with Questionnaires Using Urtak
• Pros together with Cons equally Web Based Research Tasks

Best


Nik Peachey