Willard Staff: If you are not able to participate in one of the Podcasting workshops this month, or would rather learn on your own timetable, you are in luck. The Fusion: Podcasting webpage offers a handout and short video tutorials (screencasts) to lead you through the steps of podcasting.

And, there’s more! If you want to earn 3 Salary Advancement Workshop hours while you podcast, you can enroll in the free, online professional development, Moodle course: Podcasting. This course uses the handout and screencasts on the Fusion webpage to lead you through the steps. Work at your own pace, when it fits in your schedule, from any computer with Internet access. Just in time learning, at your convenience!

Don’t hesitate to contact me with any questions or suggestions. I’m happy to provide you with additional assistance.

Image Credit: Blue Snowball Microphone by sklathill

tag: edtech k12 podcasting podcasts professional development tutorials screencasts Moodle

I was pleasantly surprised yesterday when my attempt to embed a Google Gadget in an Edublog’s post was successful. I didn’t anticipate it working, since the embedding of javascript and other code directly in a post has been disabled due to security concerns. After having a little time to read some RSS feeds last night, I see that Edublogs now allows you to embed javascript, iframes, and object code. You can just copy the provided embedding code, click the code tab while composing a post, and paste. This will also work in text box sidebar widgets. See Sue Water’s Edublogger post with some Tom Barrett’s screenshots illustrating the process.

Tips

• If you click the Visual tab after pasting in the code and don’t see anything where you embedded the object, that’s to be expected. It will show up when you publish or preview.
• Sue Waters recommends pasting in the code as the last step before publishing. As Mr. Farmer explains, if you edit and resave a post with embedded object code, it will break the code. He is hoping to fix this bug soon.
• Sue Waters also states that if you are embedding flash (swf) or a video, you should still use the toolbar buttons on the Visual tab. See the examples on Edublogger, along with the screenshots of how to embed a VoiceThread or Animato presentation.

I know of several teachers who will be thrilled with this new feature.
tag: k12 edtech Edublogs code javascript embedding widgets Sue Waters Tom Barrett James Farmer

Image Credit: Greasemonkey by xrrr

I stumbled upon a new feature for Google Docs Spreadsheets, the Gadget. The chart button now has a new look and provides access to a menu to choose a Chart or a Gadget. Wow! There are some fun things here. First I tried the Map Gadget, to add an interactive map to my spreadsheet.

1. Enter the addresses in Column A.
2. Enter the name of the building in Column B.
3. Select the data with a click and drag.
4. Click the Insert button and choose Gadget.
5. In the Add a Gadget window on the right, click the Maps link.
6. Under Map, click the Add to spreadsheet button.
7. Enter a Title if desired. Check the box for “Last column as tooltips.” This displays the name of the building when the tack is clicked or hovered over.
8. Click the Save & Close button.
9. When I added another building to the spreadsheet, is was automatically displayed on the map.
10. Click the Gadget menu button and choose Publish.
11. Copy and paste the provided code to publish the gadget in a webpage.

As you can see below, the code works well in an Edublog’s post.

The Organizational Chart could be used to generate a calling tree, change of command, etc. The Gauges look fun. I’ll try that next.

I was surprised to find Pivot Tables, a more advanced feature that I use in Excel to track Federal Programs’ Budgets. And, of course, there is are search gadgets. (We are talking Google here.) Just enter a few search terms in a cell, select the cell, and insert a Web Search or Image Search gadget. There are many other gadgets available.

There are a few other upgrades. The new “Set Notification Rules” allows you to choose to receive an email when changes are made to the spreadsheet. Three formulas for sorting and filtering data have been added. The color palette has been expanded. The Delete menu features a Clear Comments option.
tag: edtech K12 Google Docs Spreadsheets Gadget

The first webcast news story from our Willard High School Eye of the Tiger News Team is
now onavailable School Tube. Justin D, Eye of the Tiger weekly anchor, produced a segment entitled Environment in the Election. Donna Fishel, Publications Adviser and teacher promises more videos to come.

To view the video, click the image or the title link above. The embedding code from School Tube does not work with Edublogs.

tag: k12 edtech journalism video WHS Eye of the TIger election environment

Children’s Hospital Boston Interactive Features webpage has a series of tutorials to present complex medical and biological concepts in an interactive format including: firing a virtual neuron, how cancer grows and spreads, how tissues form and diseases develop, etc.

tag: k12 edtech science medical biology Children’s Hospital Boston