Blogger
www.blogger.com
Free weblog publishing tool from Google, for sharing text, photos and video.
"A blog is a personal diary. A daily pulpit. A collaborative space. A political soapbox. A breaking-news outlet. A collection of links. Your own private thoughts. Memos to the world. Your blog is whatever you want it to be. There are millions of them, in all shapes and sizes, and there are no real rules.
A blog gives you your own voice on the web. It's a place to collect and share things that you find interesting— whether it's your political commentary, a personal diary, or links to web sites you want to remember.
Many people use a blog just to organize their own thoughts, while others command influential, worldwide audiences of thousands. Professional and amateur journalists use blogs to publish breaking news, while personal journalers reveal inner thoughts."
~Blogger
Use Blogger in the classroom for responding to writing prompts, diary entries and for production and publishing of a student's written work.
Free weblog publishing tool from Google, for sharing text, photos and video.
"A blog is a personal diary. A daily pulpit. A collaborative space. A political soapbox. A breaking-news outlet. A collection of links. Your own private thoughts. Memos to the world. Your blog is whatever you want it to be. There are millions of them, in all shapes and sizes, and there are no real rules.
A blog gives you your own voice on the web. It's a place to collect and share things that you find interesting— whether it's your political commentary, a personal diary, or links to web sites you want to remember.
Many people use a blog just to organize their own thoughts, while others command influential, worldwide audiences of thousands. Professional and amateur journalists use blogs to publish breaking news, while personal journalers reveal inner thoughts."
~Blogger
Use Blogger in the classroom for responding to writing prompts, diary entries and for production and publishing of a student's written work.
Discovery Education
www.discoveryeducation.com
Engaging, standards-aligned rich media and interactive digital textbooks, coupled professional development and assessment services, take students beyond the classroom.
Discovery Education transforms classrooms, empowers teachers and captivates students by leading the way in providing high quality, dynamic, Common Core aligned digital content to school districts large and small, rural and suburban and everything in between.
Accelerate student achievement in your district by capturing the minds and imaginations of students with the fascination of Discovery, tapping into students' natural curiosity and desire to learn.
Use Discovery Education in the classroom in order to engage students in the lesson and as a starting point for writing prompts and student essay writing.
Engaging, standards-aligned rich media and interactive digital textbooks, coupled professional development and assessment services, take students beyond the classroom.
Discovery Education transforms classrooms, empowers teachers and captivates students by leading the way in providing high quality, dynamic, Common Core aligned digital content to school districts large and small, rural and suburban and everything in between.
Accelerate student achievement in your district by capturing the minds and imaginations of students with the fascination of Discovery, tapping into students' natural curiosity and desire to learn.
Use Discovery Education in the classroom in order to engage students in the lesson and as a starting point for writing prompts and student essay writing.
Google Docs
www.google.com
GoogleDocs is a free cloud-based word processor. It is part of the GoogleDrive productivity suite that allows you to easily create documents, presentations, spreadsheets, forms, drawings, and sites. Many schools have GoogleDrive accounts which provide students with secure access and school-based email addresses.
Google Docs is an exceptional suite of tools for the classroom. You might have your students begin their writing using a graphic organizer but type in a Google Doc. Students can share Google Docs with one another and collaborate / self and peer evaluate and they can share their writing with you to make keeping track of student writing a breeze. Naming conventions are important so that your Google account is easy to organize. Once a Doc is shared with you, you can easily comment on your student's work. Google will send you an email when your student makes a revision that you suggested. This option to comment on student writing outside of class allows you more time to give live feedback in the classroom. Finally, Google Docs offers a no-fuss turn in for student work. Even if you do not use Google Docs throughout the writing process, students can upload their work and then share with you.
GoogleDocs is a free cloud-based word processor. It is part of the GoogleDrive productivity suite that allows you to easily create documents, presentations, spreadsheets, forms, drawings, and sites. Many schools have GoogleDrive accounts which provide students with secure access and school-based email addresses.
Google Docs is an exceptional suite of tools for the classroom. You might have your students begin their writing using a graphic organizer but type in a Google Doc. Students can share Google Docs with one another and collaborate / self and peer evaluate and they can share their writing with you to make keeping track of student writing a breeze. Naming conventions are important so that your Google account is easy to organize. Once a Doc is shared with you, you can easily comment on your student's work. Google will send you an email when your student makes a revision that you suggested. This option to comment on student writing outside of class allows you more time to give live feedback in the classroom. Finally, Google Docs offers a no-fuss turn in for student work. Even if you do not use Google Docs throughout the writing process, students can upload their work and then share with you.
Mixbook
www.mixbook.com
Mixbook was originally created for users to create digital scrapbooks using personal photos from weddings, vacations, parties, etc. While it is great for all of those purposes, Mixbook also has some great applications for education.
Use Mixbook in the classroom if you are looking for a unique way for all of your students to demonstrate what they've learned. One of its greatest features (other than the great layout and beautiful finished product) is that Mixbook allows multiple users to collaborate on one book. Create a project as an individual or collaborate with a group with password-protected access to an easy-to-use online editor. Share from any computer with internet access. There is no cost to use the Mixbook editor, store images, and share projects online. Pay only for the print copies - only if you want them! Edit photos, play with typem and create special effects; add and make one-of-a-ind design elements with stickers; and customize layouts.
Students can produce a Mixbook as a vibrant and engaging writing product. Any text development that can occur within Microsoft Word or Google Docs can occur within Mixbook as well. Mixbook can be used for journals, diaries, newsletters, pro / con argument development, current events analysis, etc.
Mixbook was originally created for users to create digital scrapbooks using personal photos from weddings, vacations, parties, etc. While it is great for all of those purposes, Mixbook also has some great applications for education.
Use Mixbook in the classroom if you are looking for a unique way for all of your students to demonstrate what they've learned. One of its greatest features (other than the great layout and beautiful finished product) is that Mixbook allows multiple users to collaborate on one book. Create a project as an individual or collaborate with a group with password-protected access to an easy-to-use online editor. Share from any computer with internet access. There is no cost to use the Mixbook editor, store images, and share projects online. Pay only for the print copies - only if you want them! Edit photos, play with typem and create special effects; add and make one-of-a-ind design elements with stickers; and customize layouts.
Students can produce a Mixbook as a vibrant and engaging writing product. Any text development that can occur within Microsoft Word or Google Docs can occur within Mixbook as well. Mixbook can be used for journals, diaries, newsletters, pro / con argument development, current events analysis, etc.
Noodle Tools
www.noodletools.com
NoodleTools is a set of integrated tools for note-taking, outlining, citation, document archiving and annotation, and collaborative research and writing.
Use Noodle Tools in your classroom to create projects for your students. Students can compose their papers via the Noodle Tools connection with Google Docs and share with you. You can guide your students and give feedback on the writing process every step of the way! Google Docs is awesome, but add Noodle Tools and it is out of this world!
NoodleTools is a set of integrated tools for note-taking, outlining, citation, document archiving and annotation, and collaborative research and writing.
Use Noodle Tools in your classroom to create projects for your students. Students can compose their papers via the Noodle Tools connection with Google Docs and share with you. You can guide your students and give feedback on the writing process every step of the way! Google Docs is awesome, but add Noodle Tools and it is out of this world!
One Word
http://oneword.com/
"Rather than defining words or talking about words, oneword™ is about being inspired by words.
The words chosen are usually very simple words—some profound, others mundane. It is our belief that even the most mundane word can inspire profound writing. That is not to say the we are expecting profundity—we are only expecting you to be inspired.
There are plenty of other sites dedicated to learning new words and improving your vocabulary. oneword™ is dedicated to helping writers learn to flow.
Flow on."
Use one word in your classroom to inspire student writing.
"Rather than defining words or talking about words, oneword™ is about being inspired by words.
The words chosen are usually very simple words—some profound, others mundane. It is our belief that even the most mundane word can inspire profound writing. That is not to say the we are expecting profundity—we are only expecting you to be inspired.
There are plenty of other sites dedicated to learning new words and improving your vocabulary. oneword™ is dedicated to helping writers learn to flow.
Flow on."
Use one word in your classroom to inspire student writing.
Plinky
http://www.plinky.com
Every day Plinky provides a new prompt (like a question, or a challenge), and everyone gets a chance to answer.
It's simple to add photos, maps, playlists and more. You can easily share your Plinky answers on Facebook, Twitter, WordPress, Tumblr, and most major blogging services.
Use Plinky in your classroom to inspire student writing.
Every day Plinky provides a new prompt (like a question, or a challenge), and everyone gets a chance to answer.
It's simple to add photos, maps, playlists and more. You can easily share your Plinky answers on Facebook, Twitter, WordPress, Tumblr, and most major blogging services.
Use Plinky in your classroom to inspire student writing.
Storify
www.storify.com
"Storify users tell stories by collecting updates from social networks, amplifying the voices that matter to create a new story format that is interactive, dynamic and social. Discover meaningful social media from the best storytellers online, including journalists, bloggers, editors and people like you, too. The front page displays the best images, videos, links, updates and other media collected by Storify users. You can click on the story associated with each media element to get the context of why it’s interesting. Any element can be re-used for your own stories, or also commented on, liked or shared."
"From the home page or at the top of any page on the site you can search to find media collected on Storify.
Storify lets you curate social networks to build social stories, bringing together media scattered across the Web into a coherent narrative. Storify lets you curate social networks to build social stories, bringing together media scattered across the Web into a coherent narrative. In the Storify editor, you can search social media networks to find media elements about the topic you want to Storify. Look through Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Flickr, Instagram and more to gather material for your stories. Drag and drop status updates, photos or videos to bring together the social media elements that will best illustrate your story. You can always reorder elements in your story, or delete them if you find something better. And you can always add more items later on. Your story is always editable, so you can pull in the latest from the social web."
"A Storify story is more than just a collection of elements from social media. It's also your opportunity to make sense of what you've pulled together. You can write a headline, introduction and insert text anywhere inside your story. You can add headers, hyperlinks and styled text. Build a narrative and give context to your readers."
"Storify stories can be embedded anywhere on the Web by simply pasting an embed code, just like embedding a video. You can also connect Storify to your Wordpress or Drupal blog, publish to Tumblr or Posterous, or send an email newsletter through Mailchimp."
"Storify isn’t just about pulling media from social networks, it’s about spreading stories too. Storify helps your story go viral by making it easy to notify all the people quoted in your story, so they will know they are now part of something larger. These links are highly likely to be shared further on social networks and draw a response."
~Storify
Use Storify with your students to engage students and allow them to write about what is interesting to them.
"Storify users tell stories by collecting updates from social networks, amplifying the voices that matter to create a new story format that is interactive, dynamic and social. Discover meaningful social media from the best storytellers online, including journalists, bloggers, editors and people like you, too. The front page displays the best images, videos, links, updates and other media collected by Storify users. You can click on the story associated with each media element to get the context of why it’s interesting. Any element can be re-used for your own stories, or also commented on, liked or shared."
"From the home page or at the top of any page on the site you can search to find media collected on Storify.
Storify lets you curate social networks to build social stories, bringing together media scattered across the Web into a coherent narrative. Storify lets you curate social networks to build social stories, bringing together media scattered across the Web into a coherent narrative. In the Storify editor, you can search social media networks to find media elements about the topic you want to Storify. Look through Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Flickr, Instagram and more to gather material for your stories. Drag and drop status updates, photos or videos to bring together the social media elements that will best illustrate your story. You can always reorder elements in your story, or delete them if you find something better. And you can always add more items later on. Your story is always editable, so you can pull in the latest from the social web."
"A Storify story is more than just a collection of elements from social media. It's also your opportunity to make sense of what you've pulled together. You can write a headline, introduction and insert text anywhere inside your story. You can add headers, hyperlinks and styled text. Build a narrative and give context to your readers."
"Storify stories can be embedded anywhere on the Web by simply pasting an embed code, just like embedding a video. You can also connect Storify to your Wordpress or Drupal blog, publish to Tumblr or Posterous, or send an email newsletter through Mailchimp."
"Storify isn’t just about pulling media from social networks, it’s about spreading stories too. Storify helps your story go viral by making it easy to notify all the people quoted in your story, so they will know they are now part of something larger. These links are highly likely to be shared further on social networks and draw a response."
~Storify
Use Storify with your students to engage students and allow them to write about what is interesting to them.
Tumblr Writing Prompts
http://writingprompts.tumblr.com/
An excellent collection of writing prompts for teachers to use in their classrooms
Use these prompts in your classroom to inspire student writing.
An excellent collection of writing prompts for teachers to use in their classrooms
Use these prompts in your classroom to inspire student writing.
Wikispaces
www.wikispaces.com
A wiki is a space on the Web where you can share work and ideas, pictures and links, videos and media — and anything else you can think of. Wikispaces is special because we give you a visual editor and a bunch of other tools to make sharing all kinds of content as easy for students as it is for their teachers.
Use wikispaces in the classroom to enable each student to cultivate a unique online space to showcase their best work, and teachers assess performance as it progresses. Student groups can collaborate on projects that address real-world questions, and share their findings with a real-world audience.
The wiki logs every change, so you can easily compare drafts of a page or revert to an earlier version. This makes a wiki an excellent choice for student writing, whether individual or collaborative. Concerning collaboration, every educational wiki lets you organize members into project-related teams, each with its own pages, files, and permissions.
A wiki is a space on the Web where you can share work and ideas, pictures and links, videos and media — and anything else you can think of. Wikispaces is special because we give you a visual editor and a bunch of other tools to make sharing all kinds of content as easy for students as it is for their teachers.
Use wikispaces in the classroom to enable each student to cultivate a unique online space to showcase their best work, and teachers assess performance as it progresses. Student groups can collaborate on projects that address real-world questions, and share their findings with a real-world audience.
The wiki logs every change, so you can easily compare drafts of a page or revert to an earlier version. This makes a wiki an excellent choice for student writing, whether individual or collaborative. Concerning collaboration, every educational wiki lets you organize members into project-related teams, each with its own pages, files, and permissions.
Zopler
www.zopler.com
Zopler is a social network where writers, teachers and students can easily collaborate on writing stories together as a group. Zopler's unique story pages allow users to insert paragraphs within the storyline, not just at the end. Users can also upload pictures and illustrations for each paragraph.
Use Zopler in the classroom to inspire student writing and collaboration.
Zopler is a social network where writers, teachers and students can easily collaborate on writing stories together as a group. Zopler's unique story pages allow users to insert paragraphs within the storyline, not just at the end. Users can also upload pictures and illustrations for each paragraph.
Use Zopler in the classroom to inspire student writing and collaboration.