If you don’t live it, it won’t come out of your horn. ~ Charlie Parker
The Flow, The Rain and the Book: Glogster Presentation Tools
Our kids have been fully immersed in Glogster.edu lately, as I introduced them to the site and got them experimenting, and then my science teaching colleague had them using their accounts to create projects around engineering bridge design, and now I have them working on some independent book poster projects.
One thing we did do this year is we highly and repeatedly stressed design elements: use of color, use of animation, use of font, use of clip art, etc. Both of us showed them Glogs that were well-designed and not-so-well-designed, and sparked discussions about “what worked and what didn’t work” for us as viewers of the work. We both think these discussions and reminders have had an impact, as we see a higher quality of work going on this year with Glogster (where students can easily get too wrapped up in the “this is cool” factor).
Not long ago, Glogster rolled out some ways to collect glogs in your “classrooms” and present them as a entire package. The other day, I started to play around with the three tools: the book, the rain and the flow. They are basically the same idea, but with slight little twists.
If you are on Glogster.edu, you can find the Presentations link right on your dashboard. It’s pretty easy to set up a Presentation, as you just drag Glogs from your classrooms into a tool box and choose the style of presentation you want. The site then kicks out the link and embed code for you. This is one of those innovations where teachers asked, and Glogster responded.
Here are some of the Bridge Projects in each of the formats.
The Flow
The Rain
The Book
(which doesn’t come with embed code, I guess. That’s because it shows a full scale version of each glog in order.)
Personally, I like The Flow version the best, although I can see the appeal of The Rain, as glogs drop from the sky in a very dramatic way. The Book is neat and straightforward, and would be good for class presentations. What I like is this will easily allow me to share our glogs at our own online sites, for parents and students to view.
Peace (in the sharing),
Kevin
| Print article | This entry was posted by dogtrax on February 6, 2011 at 6:30 am, and is filed under my classroom, Technology Resources. Follow any responses to this post through RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback from your own site. |
about 1 year ago
Thanks for the info, Kevin! This will be really helpful as we embark on our first use at Glogster in a few weeks! I’m interested in the design aspect you mentioned too. Did you just look at examples you found or specific ones that you created? I can see my students getting really caught up in the animation and the “fun” features and forgetting that their poster has a purpose.
about 1 year ago
Hi Kevin, I like this too. As you said, I think the book version would be great for class presentations–no stopping to open the next one, just a click. My 8th grade history class did Glogster presentations on former slave narratives they had read. In looking through the other Glogsters teachers had made, I learned this method of making a table of contents linked to their Glogsters. That’s been an effective way to present as well, but I’m so glad Glogster and other cloud-based apps are really responding to teachers and joining us in the journey!
Again, thanks for sharing,
Denise
Glogster Table of Contents with Links
about 1 year ago
I agree with you. I like the flow version best. It let’s you quickly see the overview of the blog, but in a manner that is not too overwhelming. Thanks for sharing your students’ projects!
about 1 year ago
Design is a too often left out of teaching presentation software. Most teachers have not received any training in design so it is difficult for them to pass it along. Good design is more than just not putting yellow text on a white background, it is developing creativity, problem solving and communication skills (21st century). Since art has been cut from many schools, teaching good design can fill the gap that art once filled.
about 1 year ago
Jim
I think your point about art, and lack of art, is important. Elements of “design” are often left to chance. Which is not always a good thing.
Kevin
about 1 year ago
Thanks for the post Kevin, just wanted to point out that the link is edu.glogster.com
Glad to see the Presentation Styles getting some love!
about 1 year ago
Thanks, Mike.
I meant to include the link.
Kevin
about 1 year ago
Thanks for sharing this new feature in Glogster, its a good one, and I think I like the Flow best as well. Also elements of design are important so its a good teaching point. Thanks for sharing.