40 ICT Ideas in 40 minutes

Some of the programs and tools are getting slightly dated but the concepts are still very fresh.

Teach your kids how to use the web smarter and safer: Welcome to the Web

welcome to the web"Welcome to the Web" is an interactive set of web pages which can be used to teach children (and adults) about the Internet. They can be used in the classroom / computer room and children are welcome to explore them as they wish (although they have been designed to use in sequence).

The resources are in split into seven sections:

1. The Beginning - explains how to use the site.
2. Getting Started Online - teaches children about the basic concepts involved in the Internet (World Wide Web, Hyperlinks, Back button etc). This introductory lesson also gives valuable practice in visiting and navigating around web sites.
3. Staying Safe - encourages pupils to keep themselves safe online by following the SMART rules. Also tests their understanding usign interactive activities and fun quizzes.
4. Using Your Browser - helps people to learn more about their web browsers... what are the different features and how are they used?
5. Searching Online - teaches children how to search effectively, and keep themselves safe when doing so. Also identifies search engines which are particularly suitable for children to use.
6. Trying Top Tricks - finding information on the net is great, but it is also important to know how that information can be used. This section explains about printing, using the Find tool to locate specific information within web pages, copying and pasting text, and saving images from the web. Also includes information about copyright and why it is important to credit others when you use their work.
7. The Welcome to the Web Challenge - When the children have completed all of the sections of Welcome to the Web, they can complete this exciting challenge. It requires them to use all of the skills which they have learnt to catch the creator of a destructive computer virus!

When visitors complete the challenge, they are able to print a personalised certificate to show their competence in using the Internet.  Access it here.

Flash Classroom: Flash tutorials for teachers

What is it? Flash Classroom is a great site for those want to learn how to create Flash content using Adobe Flash CS3 or CS4.  Flash is a platform that allows you to create multimedia presentations, simple games and manipulate photos and videos.  Flash is really a cool tool for teachers and students to grab your audiences attention.

How can I use it in my teaching and learning? Flash classroom has a number of tutorials specifically aimed at the teacher to create interactive white board presentation content.  A simple drag and drop game or animate images and shapes.  you can simply put your older (teenagers) on this to learn the basic concepts of Flash for a great starting point.

What level of expertise is required? Look, this site is aimed at the novice or totally uninitiated Flash user and it could not be any simpler for that audience.   But remember  Flash is a computer programming language and if you are not familiar with it at all there will be a relatively steep learning curve.  My advice is to get some of your more advanced or older kids to work through some of the tutorials at the same time and share the knowledge around.

Would love to hear from anyone who has had a shot at flash classroom it is available here.

How to get your students programming their own games in an hour with SCRATCH

Scratch is a brilliant visual programming tools specifically targeted at getting students and novices involved in programming and makes it dead simple for them to create a game or multimedia presentation in next to no time.

I personally have introduced a lot of classes to SCRATCH and have found the best way to do this is is introduce show them some videos explaining what it is and what it does.  Then have about 3 copies of the instruction cards printed and laminated to give to your students.

Once you have laminated cards they will show the kids how to do a specific task such as make an object follow the mouse, add music to a game or animate a sprite.

Each task takes bout 5 minutes and there is about 12 in all.  I guarantee this will sow a seed in your students head and they will be making their own scratch apps and games in a jiffy.

Fresh ideas for using Powerpoint in your Classroom

What is it:  PowerPoint is probably one of the most versatile programs available to you as a teacher and can be used in so many ways to enhance teaching and learning.  I bet that you have never seen it used like this before as quite a powerful artistic and animation resource.

I know we have all had death by PowerPoint Sessions where the presenter reads boring slides word for word but they are really giving this great program a bad rap.  I use it all the time to create e-portfolios that are are media rich, quick and secure by embedding and inserting content from nearly everything we do in the classroom.

How can ypu use it in the Classroom: Powerpoint in the classroom is a great site to teach you some of the more advanced and cool tricks tucked away inside PowerPoint that we often overlook. with simple to follow visual tutorials that will catch you students attention and give them plenty of new tools and ideas to present and create their ideas.

What level of expertise is required: Very little this is for all audiences and I guarantee you will look at PowerPoint differently after giving this a run.  The site is available here.