Prompt: Write a post about any topic where you embed something.
That’s it! The topic is completely up to you, but we’d love to see your use of a tool or service that lets you embed.
If you really need a hint as to service that allows you to embed, here are just a few:
- Animoto
- Storify
- Livebinders
- Twitter (embed tweets or timelines)
- Padlet
- Voki
- Voicethreads
- AudioBoo
- Soundcloud
- Bitstrips
- ToonDoo
- Google Forms, Docs, and Slides
- Prezi
- ThingLink
The list above is a great one for tools that can be embedded. I have had some limited experience with some of them, so my approach to this post was to find out how each one of the tools on the list could be used on a website (or platform that allows for embedding).
ANIMOTO
I have used Animoto a little in the past, possibly for both personal and professional use. Not sure what Animoto is? Let me EMBED a YouTube video for you! 😉
STORIFY
This is a tool I had not heard of before and it sounds really cool! Not sure what it is? Here is a video of course!
Storify seems like a VERY cool tool I am eager to try out. I will have to embed one of those in a future post.
LIVEBINDERS
This is another tool I had not used before, though I had heard of it. Of course I looked for a video on it that would explain it quickly to me:
It seems like a cool idea and one that I will have try out in the future post.
TWITTER
Part of me doesn’t think Twitter needs any introduction or explanation. I have had a Twitter account for many years and I know I can embed my tweets into the sidebar of my website (I have chosen not to). My Twitter account is both personal and professional, though for the longest time it was strictly professional. Then the 2016 elections happened and Twitter quickly became the place to get a lot of information quickly as well as a place to join the dialog. I have never used my Twitter account with students or directly in relation to my classroom unless it was to tweet out a post from my blog. So that made me curious…what are some ways educators are using twitter?
As a PLN:
Twitter Thoughts from Alec Curious:
PADLET
This is a tool I have used more as a participant than the creator. In my experience it has been used at staff developments and professional developments. I do enjoy the tool and had been looking for ways to incorporate it more into my classroom and even the workshops I deliver now.
VOKI
Talk about a throwback for me! Voki was a tool I was introduced to years ago when I first became a part of the Discovery Educator Network (where I learned the most about Web 2.0 tools and it rocked my world). I created a Voki, but beyond that I never really used it again.
VOICE THREAD
Another throwback! I also used Voice Thread ages ago and did use it with my class. The kids really enjoyed it. When I was searching out a good explanation of it I encountered an entire playlist by fellow #edublogsclub blogger Michelle Pacansky-Brock. She always does an amazing job in her videos so they are worth a watch for sure.
AUDIOBOO
Another cool tool I had not heard of! Here is a quick intro to it:
I really like how no account is required to use it. So students can simply use it without sharing any of their personal information.
SOUND CLOUD
I have actually used Sound Cloud before for my podcasting needs. Here is a video that shares some ways teachers use it:
BITSTRIPS
I am an avid user of my Bitmoji, and had made a Bitstrip or two in the past just to amuse myself and my family. When I went to look at Bitstrips again for this post it turns out it was taken offline over a year ago. 😦
Don’t worry! Here is a video on how to use Bitmojis in your classroom!
I am not shy about using my Bitmoji in various places and I would totally use it with students.
TOONDOO
This is another tool I had not heard of, but after some research it seems like the perfect tool to fill the void left by Bitstrips.
GOOGLE
Like Twitter, Google really needs no explanation in my opinion, at least not in this blog post. We don’t use Google products in my school district, but I know a great many do and entire training programs are dedicated to how to best use the Google family of tools to enhance education and student achievement. Google tools are the tool of choice for me personally and I have used it quite extensively to collaborate with people all around the globe.
PREZI
This is another tool that I have used in the past, but not so much anymore. It isn’t that its not a great tool, but more so about time and the immense variety of tools that exist to accomplish my various teacher tasks.
THINGLINK
The last tool on the list is one that I have heard more about lately, and have seen in action but never used myself. After watching the following video I was inspired to create a ThinkLink for a future post.
An interesting aside to all of this is that an article I was reading as a part of my dissertation research, actually listed some of these tools. The article is titled “Understanding the Roles of Families in Virtual Learning” by Rachel Currie-Rubin and Sean J. Smith. The article was relevant to me because my dissertation topic is K-12 online learning and also because I have recently enrolled my middle school son in an online school. The article lists Voice Thread, Animoto, and ToonDoo among its list of “technology-based solutions for social skill development.” Just struck me as an interesting happenstance…here I am catching up on blog posts and just so happened to read an article related to my dissertation that addresses some of the very same tools.
Anyway, I would love to hear how you use any of the tools above, or how you might be planning on using one now that you have read this post. Share your thoughts with me in the comments below! 🙂
21st Century Educator 