Again with the Prezi... I introduced this application to my Frosh students and it went better than expected (you never know if the site will be blocked, or the site will block multiple registration attempts from the same IP address).
We finished PowerPoint, as usual, then moved onto the Google Docs Presentation application, somewhat unusual. The students did NOT like Google's app (mostly because it isn't as "pretty" as PowerPoint). We jumped into Prezi yesterday and they really took off with it. I was surprised how many didn't produce a strictly linear presentation. Some were using the "invisible" frames to zoom in (or out) of elements embedded within other elements. I was really pleased with the creativity some showed.
Of course, some projects were utter disasters. That's what happens when you introduce 9th graders to the basic skills, then let them "explore". When you have a group of 36 people some will really explore and run with a project, others will just sit there because the lack of structure just doesn't work for them. It's important to mix it up for everyone!
Next year: Blogs. We're going to do blogs. I didn't like the blog concept and haven't been able to see much value, but if students are reflecting on their LEARNING, it can be a really powerful tool. A blog can be especially helpful for students who are trying to wrap up a portfolio at the end of their high school career. It's really satisfying to look back at a time before we acquired all these skills we take for granted! We're doing it!
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