Last week I published a blog post about LitCharts. Shortly after that post went live my friend Denise texted me to say how much she loves the LitCharts iPhone app. Until then I wasn't aware that LitCharts offered an iOS app. It turns out that LitCharts is also available as a free Android app. The LitCharts iOS and Android apps offer the same great literature guides that are found on the LitCharts website. The apps are free and advertisement-free. Besides the guides themselves, the best aspect of the apps is that they can be used offline. Students can choose which guides that they want to use offline. LitCharts features background information on a book's author, a color-coded list of themes in the book, a plot summary, a character list and summary, and a theme-tracker. The theme-tracker helps students keep track of literary themes with examples throughout a book. This post originally appeared on Free Technology for Teachers if you see it elsewhere, it has been used without permission.              Related StoriesLitCharts Offers Guides to Popular & Classic LiteratureHopscotch - Learn Coding Basics on Your iPad or iPhoneShelfie Helps You Find Ebook and Audiobook Versions of Books 

Over the last few weeks I have shared my favorite tools for creating screencast videos on Chromebooks, on Windows and Mac computers, on iPads, and on Android tablets. Many people who read this blog work in BYOD environments or otherwise need tools for creating screencasts on a variety of devices. Therefore, this morning I put together a PDF featuring my favorite screencasting tools and methods. You can view the document as embedded below or you can grab a Google Docs copy here. This post originally appeared on Free Technology for Teachers if you see it elsewhere, it has been used without permission.              Related StoriesThe Week in Review - The OverseersTechSmith is Ending Support for All of Their Free ProductsHow to Create a Biking or Walking Route Map in Google Maps 

JoeZoo Express is a powerful Google Docs Add-on that can help you more efficiently comment on your students' writing in Google Documents. JoeZoo enables you to give feedback on students' Google Documents by simply highlighting text then selecting feedback statements from a huge menu of feedback statements. You can use standard feedback statements provided by JoeZoo or set your own statements to re-use throughout your documents. It can take some time to understand all of the nuances of JoeZoo Express. The following playlist of videos will walk you through the set-up and use of JoeZoo Express. Applications for Education JoeZoo Express could save you a lot of time when you're giving feedback and grading students' work in Google Documents. Teachers who want to use rubrics to give feedback and grades can do so within JoeZoo Express. JoeZoo offers a free rubric builder tool. You can customize the rubric to meet your specific needs. The rubrics that you create can be saved and inserted into students' documents when you are grading their work. JoeZoo Express does integrate with Google Classroom. You can import your Google Classroom rosters into JoeZoo to streamline the process of returning work to your students. This post originally appeared on Free Technology for Teachers if you see it elsewhere, it has been used without permission.              Related StoriesThe Week in Review - The Overseers4 Google Apps for Education Updates You Might Have Missed This WeekGreat Tools for Creating Screencasts - A PDF Handout 

On Monday morning Google introduced their latest attempt at building a social network. The new product is called Spaces. Google Spaces is a platform on which you can create small communities of friends and colleagues in which you share links, notes, and pictures. A Google Spaces Chrome extension makes it easy to share links with people in your Space. I created a couple of communities this morning. You can learn how to create a Google Spaces community by watching my video embedded below. Applications for Education Google Spaces could be a good tool to use to create a small community of friends and colleagues to build discussions around shared resources. I can also see potential for using Google Spaces as a place in which you host online discussions for high school and college students taking one of your courses. This post originally appeared on Free Technology for Teachers if you see it elsewhere, it has been used without permission.              Related StoriesHow to Insert & Modify Charts in Google SlidesHow to Use JoeZoo Express - A Google Docs Add-on for Grading WritingHow to Create a Biking or Walking Route Map in Google Maps 

MinuteEarth is a popular YouTube channel whose videos I've featured a handful of times on this blog. Their short videos provide explanations of interesting science topics like why rivers curve and why it is hot underground. Last week MinuteEarth published a video about the process their team uses to produce their videos. Applications for Education This video could be helpful in showing students the process of creating a good, concise explanatory video. In particular, it is notable that the visual components are the last things added to the video. This post originally appeared on Free Technology for Teachers if you see it elsewhere, it has been used without permission.              Related StoriesHow to Create Audio Slideshow Videos on Stupeflix (No sign-in required)How to Create an Interactive Series of VideosTry Watchkin for Distraction-free YouTube Viewing 

As the end of the school year approaches you might find yourself looking for a way to create an audio slideshow of highlights of the school year. YouTube's photo slideshow tool, Stupeflix, and Animoto all offer easy ways to create audio slideshow videos. Wideo does that too and also allows you to add interactive elements to your video. On Wideo you can insert interactive buttons into each frame of your video. The buttons can be hyperlinked to any webpage that you like. When people are watching your video they can click the buttons to be taken to the webpage you want them to land on. My video embedded below shows you how to create interactive videos on Wideo. Applications for Education With Wideo you could create a video to showcase highlights of the school year that include links to examples of students' work, links to information about places visited on a school field trip, or a link from a closing slide to information about summer learning programs for students. This post originally appeared on Free Technology for Teachers if you see it elsewhere, it has been used without permission.              Related StoriesHow to Create Audio Slideshow Videos on Stupeflix (No sign-in required)How to Insert & Modify Charts in Google SlidesGet Inspiration for Video Projects and Help a Non-profit at the Same Time 

This morning I received an email from Remind (formerly Remind 101) that reminded that I can download my message history. The history option lets me choose a range of dates in which messages were sent and then save those messages in PDF format. In the video embedded below I demonstrate how easy it is to download a history of Remind messages. Applications for Education As I mentioned in the video above, downloading a message history can be a good way to keep a physical record of messages sent and received. For teachers and or student teachers who are trying to demonstrate their efforts to communicate with parents, a copy of Remind message history could be useful in that endeavor. This video is one of more than 200 practical ed tech tips and tutorials that you can find on my YouTube channel. This post originally appeared on Free Technology for Teachers if you see it elsewhere, it has been used without permission.              Related StoriesHow to Insert & Modify Charts in Google SlidesCreate an Interactive Video Summary of the School YearHow to a Create Google Spaces Community 

Over the weekend I received an email from a reader who requested more pictures of my dogs. The email simply read, "more dog pictures, please! Are you on Instagram?" Yes, I am on Instagram. My Instagram profile is public so that everyone can enjoy pictures of my dogs, scenery around western Maine, and any other random things that I photograph. Other places that you can find me online: Twitter - I Tweet my blog posts, links to the blog posts of others, and answer questions as best as I can. Occasionally, I'll share a picture or two on Twitter. Facebook - The Free Technology for Teachers Facebook page has about 428,000 likes right now. I have a personal Facebook page that I use only for friends and family. My rule of thumb on accepting friend requests on my personal Facebook page is that we have to have shared some kind of meaningful in-person experience like working together, eating together, playing sports together, or being from the same gene pool. YouTube - My YouTube channel now has more than 300 tutorial videos that I've created. LinkedIn - I'm on it, but I'm rarely on it more than once a week. Pinterest - I have some Pinterest boards. Admittedly, I stopped using it for a while and now I'm back on it. Email - you can always email me at richardbyrne (at) freetech4teachers.com I do my best to respond quickly. I do appreciate being addressed by name in an email instead of just "hey" or "hi" (pro tip for PR people, using an spelling my name correctly drastically increases your odds of me opening and reading your email). Let's connect offline: In June I'll be at a bunch of events, please say hello if you see me. Or Tweet me to meet up with you. This is where I'll be in June in this order: Glendale, AZ Abilene, TX Amarillo, TX Topeka, KS Flagstaff, AZ St. Joseph, MO Nashville, TN Denver, CO - ISTE Conference This post originally appeared on Free Technology for Teachers if you see it elsewhere, it has been used without permission.              Related StoriesConnecting Educators Who Are Nervous About Being Connected - #ce15PBS LearningMedia Seeks Digital InnovatorsSkip the "Say Hello" Tweet 

A few years ago I wrote a post about searching through the Digital Public Library of America to locate primary source documents to use with students. At that point the DPLA had relatively few, loosely organized collections. Yesterday, I received an email from DPLA informing me that they now have more than 100 primary source document sets for students. The DPLA's primary source document sets are organized by subject and time period in United States history. Depending upon the time period the DPLA primary source sets include documents, drawings, maps, photographs, and film clips. A list of points to consider accompanies each artifact in each set. Teachers should scroll to the bottom of the page on each artifact to find a teaching guide related to the primary source set. Applications for Education The DPLA's primary source sets provide teachers and students with a convenient way to find primary source documents. For teachers it can be a good way to locate resources to use in a lesson plan. For students the sets can provide a good start to a research project. On the topic of primary sources, this video provides students with a great explanation of the differences between primary and secondary sources. Last month I outlined five good activities for teaching with primary sources. My favorite on that list is layering old maps on top of current maps in Google Earth. This post originally appeared on Free Technology for Teachers if you see it elsewhere, it has been used without permission.              Related Stories10 Educational Resources About the American RevolutionPowerPoint Playbook - Animating Numbered ListsHow to Use JoeZoo Express - A Google Docs Add-on for Grading Writing 

Over the weekend I featured a new video submission to Next Vista for Learning. That video was a submission for the latest Next Vista video contest. The contest is called Creative Sprouts. The submission period is closed and voting is now open. Next Vista, a non-profit, is looking for some help with the judging of videos. If you have a few minutes to watch the videos, Next Vista would appreciate your help. Even better, if you have time to watch the videos with your students you can vote for your favorites as a class. Applications for Education Watching the finalist videos in the Creative Sprouts contest can be a good way to get ideas for your own classroom video projects. There are three finalist categories; student, student & teacher collaboration, and teacher. Next Vista is a non-profit video sharing site developed by Rushton Hurley. If you get a chance to see Rushton present at conference, take it! You won't be disappointed.  This post originally appeared on Free Technology for Teachers if you see it elsewhere, it has been used without permission.              Related StoriesHow to Be Inspired When Writing - A Student's AdviceA Great Example of a Student Video Made With ChatterPixCreate an Interactive Video Summary of the School Year 

On Wednesday afternoon Google announced the release of a new feature in Google Slides. The new feature is the option to insert charts and graphs from Google Sheets. You can insert pre-existing charts from your Google Sheets or you can create a new chart or graph from scratch in your Google Slides. In the video embedded below I demonstrate how to insert a chart into Google Slides and how to modify the chart. Applications for Education Students could use the new charts feature to create representations of data they collected in a research project. They could also use the new charts feature to display representations of data found in the Google Public Data Explorer database. If you found this video to be helpful, visit my YouTube channel for more than 300 ed tech tools tutorial videos.  This post originally appeared on Free Technology for Teachers if you see it elsewhere, it has been used without permission.              Related StoriesHow to Use JoeZoo Express - A Google Docs Add-on for Grading WritingHow to a Create Google Spaces CommunityHow to Create a Biking or Walking Route Map in Google Maps 

This week the Google for Education blog published a post that most teachers probably scrolled right past because the first sentence referenced the Google Classroom API. I don't find fault with any teacher who scrolled past the post because most of us aren't developers and aren't going to be developing our own apps to integrate into Google Classroom. But I do want to explain why you might care about the latest update to the Google Classroom API. This week's Google Classroom API update lets developers build applications that can access assignments, grades, and workflow in Google Classroom. What this means for end-users (teachers and school administrators) is that we could soon see better gradebooks and reporting systems that will eliminate the need to manually transfer grades into or out of the gradebook in Google Classroom. The update Google Classroom API will also let developers create more seamless integration between their apps and Google Classroom. For example, GeoGebra now fully integrates into Google Classroom. That integration lets teachers add GeoGebra assignments directly into their Classroom streams and lets students submit to you via Classroom their work completed in GeoGebra. Watch the video below to see how that works. This post originally appeared on Free Technology for Teachers if you see it elsewhere, it has been used without permission.              Related Stories4 Google Apps for Education Updates You Might Have Missed This WeekHow to Schedule Assignments & Announcements in Google ClassroomSoon You Will Be Able to Email Parents from Google Classroom 

On the last day of March Crash Course launched a new series of videos about physics. The series now contains seven videos on friction, integrals, derivatives, Newton's Laws, and motion. The playlist is embedded below. For some physics lessons that younger students might enjoy, take a look at NASA's Rocket Science 101. To use these Crash Course videos as part of flipped lesson try EDpuzzle, VideoANT, or VideoNot.es. This post originally appeared on Free Technology for Teachers if you see it elsewhere, it has been used without permission.              Related StoriesWhy Are Airplane Engines so Big? - How Jet Engines Work #STEMGet Inspiration for Video Projects and Help a Non-profit at the Same TimeAnother Great Resource for Learning About Mount Everest 

theLearnia is a free service that I reviewed about four years ago when it was primarily a social network built around video lessons. This week I took another look at theLearnia and learned that the site is now focused on helping teachers create video-based lessons. On theLearnia you can create video lessons up to fifteen minutes in length. Your video lessons can be simple whiteboard style instructional videos or they can be videos based on slides that you either create on theLearnia or upload as PowerPoint files. I gave the service a try this afternoon. I simply uploaded a set of PowerPoint slides then hit the record button to narrate what was shown on my slides. theLearnia also provides tools for drawing on top of your slides and or writing additional text. Videos created on theLearnia are hosted for free and you can share your videos through typical social media channels and or by embedding your video into your blog or website. You can see my test video here. Applications for Education theLearnia could be a good way for teachers who already have a bunch of PowerPoint slides to turn those slides into flipped video lessons. This post originally appeared on Free Technology for Teachers if you see it elsewhere, it has been used without permission.              Related StoriesA Crash Course in PhysicsGet Inspiration for Video Projects and Help a Non-profit at the Same TimeCreate an Interactive Video Summary of the School Year 

In August I am keynoting the Colleague 2 Colleague conference in Missouri. As a promotion for the conference, yesterday I was interviewed by the conference chair, Brent Zweifel. The video of the interview is embedded below. This post originally appeared on Free Technology for Teachers if you see it elsewhere, it has been used without permission.              Related StoriestheLearnia Offers a Good Way to Create Video LessonsA Crash Course in PhysicsWhy You and I Should Care About Updates to the Google Classroom API 

For the majority of readers of this blog the end of the school year is already here or will be here within a month. This is the time of year that I get a lot of requests for suggestions on digital portfolio tools. If you find yourself looking for a digital portfolio tool and or have colleagues asking for suggestions, take a look at the ten options featured in my PDF handout embedded below or grab the Google Docs copy. This post originally appeared on Free Technology for Teachers if you see it elsewhere, it has been used without permission.              Related StoriesCreate QR Codes for Any Item in a Seesaw Digital PortfolioHow to Create a Classroom Blog on SeeSawSeeSaw Now Lets Students Draw and Talk on Items in Their Digital Portfolios 

While I was preparing my handout on digital portfolios I noticed a cool feature in FreshGrade that is perfect for the end of the school year. In your FreshGrade account you can quickly create video slideshows highlighting your students' best work. To do this simply sign into your FreshGrade account then under the reporting tab select create learning slideshow. Then to create the learning slideshow choose a student's name, choose up to ten images, and then the video slideshow is created for you much like the way that an Animoto video slideshow is created. Applications for Education FreshGrade's learning slideshows can be shared directly with your students' parents. This could be a great way to send home a positive note to parents at the end of the school year. Disclosure: FreshGrade is currently running an advertising campaign on FreeTech4Teachers.com This post originally appeared on Free Technology for Teachers if you see it elsewhere, it has been used without permission.              Related Stories10 Good Options for Creating Digital Portfolios - A PDF HandoutFreshGrade Now Offers an Android App for TeachersInterview With Colleague 2 Colleague 

Good morning from the temporary Byrne Instructional Media, LLC office in Connecticut. I'm working in Connecticut this morning because I'm down here to see the hooding ceremony for my friend of 20+ years who has just completed her Doctorate of Nursing Practice. Meanwhile back in Maine the lilacs in my meager garden have started to bloom. Hopefully, we don't get any more snow to cover them as we did briefly on Monday morning. Here are this week's most popular posts: 1. Create an Interactive Video Summary of the School Year 2. Great Tools for Creating Screencasts - A PDF Handout 3. More Than 100 Sets of Primary Source Documents for Students 4. How to Create a Biking or Walking Route Map in Google Maps 5. How to Create a Google Spaces Community 6. Geopedia - A Map & Wikipedia Mashup 7. How to Create an Interactive Series of Videos Spring and Summer PD Opportunities With MeOnly two tickets remain for the Practical Ed Tech BYOD Camp in July. Take a look at the online workshops I'm hosting throughout the spring and summer. The Practical Ed Tech Chromebook Camp is sold out! Email me to get on the waiting list. Would you like to have me speak at your school or conference?Click here to learn about my professional development services.  Please visit the official advertisers that help keep this blog going.Practical Ed Tech is the brand through which I offer PD webinars.BoomWriter provides a fantastic tool for creating writing lessons. FreshGrade is a great online digital portfolio tool. Storyboard That is my go-to tool for creating storyboards and cartoon stories.Discovery Education & Wilkes University offer online courses for earning Master's degrees in Instructional Media.PrepFactory offers a great place for students to prepare for SAT and ACT tests.FrontRow offers adaptive online ELA and Math practice activities.  Teach n Go is a comprehensive platform for teaching online courses.The University of Maryland Baltimore County offers graduate programs for teachers.Boise State University offers a 100% online program in educational technology.EdTechTeacher is hosting host workshops in six cities in the U.S. in the summer.Buncee offers a great tool for creating visual stories.  This post originally appeared on Free Technology for Teachers if you see it elsewhere, it has been used without permission.              Related StoriesThe Week in Review - The OverseersThe Week in Review - The Most Popular PostsThe Week in Review - Transitions 

Last week Google released a new product and updated some existing products that are of interest to teachers and students. Last Monday at the Google I/O conference Google introduced a new product called Spaces. Spaces is a service that lets you create small communities to share links, notes, and pictures. Take a look at my video about Spaces to see how it works. On Wednesday of last week Google added a new charts feature to Google Slides. You can now import charts made in Google Sheets and display them in your slides. You can also use and modify one of the new charts templates in Google Slides. My video here demonstrates how to use the new charts feature in Google Slides. Also on Wednesday of last week Google announced some updates to the Google Classroom API. The updated API could lead to more apps integrating with Google Classroom, not the least of which being improved gradebook options through Google Classroom. Learn more about these updates in the explanation that I shared on Thursday. Finally, Google announced that Android apps can now be developed and published for use on Chromebooks. Beginning in June end-users will be able to add Android apps to the Acer R11, Asus, Flip, and Pixel Chromebooks. Support for running Android apps on other Chromebooks will be added later in the year. The list of supported devices can be seen here. This post originally appeared on Free Technology for Teachers if you see it elsewhere, it has been used without permission.              Related StoriesWhy You and I Should Care About Updates to the Google Classroom APIAdd Voice Notes to Pictures in Google KeepHow to Insert & Modify Charts in Google Slides 

If you teach any lessons about the Roman Empire, take a look at ORBIS from Stanford University. ORBIS is Stanford University's Geospatial Network Model of the Roman Empire. On ORBIS students can calculate the distance and travel times between 751 settlements in the Roman Empire. The calculations happen according to the modes of travel that would have been used during the time of the Roman Empire's greatest height. For example, I calculated the time and cost to travel by foot, wagon, and boat between Roma and Chalcis in March. The calculations include the cost of feeding donkeys along the way. Click for full size image.  Applications for Education While you could certainly have students use Google Earth to map distances between settlements in the Roman Empire, ORBIS is a step above that because students can calculate travel times and distances according the modes of transportation that were available during the Roman Empire. This post originally appeared on Free Technology for Teachers if you see it elsewhere, it has been used without permission.              Related Stories4 Google Apps Updates You Might Have Missed Last WeekThe Week in Review - The Lilacs Have ArrivedFreshGrade Helps You Quickly Create Video Slideshows of Your Students' Best Work 

Read Write Think is a great place to find story starters and interactive writing templates. A good example of that is found on Read Write Think's Compare & Contrast Map. The Compare & Contrast Map is a template for creating a comparative essay. Using the template students are guided through writing three styles of comparison essays. To get started students identify two things that they wish to compare and or contrast. Then they choose if they want to write a "whole to whole" essay, a "similarities to differences" essay, or a "point to point" essay. Whichever essay type they choose, students are guided through the types of information they should put in each part of their essays. When their essays are complete students can share them via email or print them. Applications for Education For younger students who need help formatting an essay, the Read Write Think templates can be very helpful. If you haven't spent much time exploring the resources on Read Write Think's classroom resources page, I encourage you to do so. This post originally appeared on Free Technology for Teachers if you see it elsewhere, it has been used without permission.              Related StoriesScribeasy Offers Great Visual Prompts for Creating Short StoriesInteractive Maps of Travel Through the Roman Empire4 Google Apps Updates You Might Have Missed Last Week 

Over the last week I have had at least five people ask me for suggestions for a tool to create an audio slideshow video for an end-of-year assembly or similar exercise. The following are the audio slideshow video creation tools that I suggest more than most. YouTube's audio slideshow creation tool is my first suggestion for people who have Google Accounts to which they have been saving a lot of images. YouTube's audio slideshow creation tool allows users to quickly import batches of images from their Google Drive accounts and or from their Android devices. The tool offers a large collection of Creative Commons licensed music that you can use in your videos. Watch my tutorial embedded below to learn more about how to create an audio slideshow in YouTube. Stupeflix doesn't require users to register in order to produce a video. Stupeflix could be a good option to use with students who don't have email addresses that they can use in school. Like YouTube's audio slideshow tool, Stupeflix offers a library of free music. In the video embedded below I demonstrate how to use Stupeflix to create a video without registering on the site. Sharalike is another option to consider when you want to create an audio slideshow. The concept behind Sharalike is much like the one behind YouTube's Slideshow Creator and Stupeflix. To create an audio slideshow on Sharalike simply import some images from your computer, your Android device or from your iPad, drag them into the sequence in which you want them to appear, and then add some music. Sharalike offers a small collection of stock music that you can use or you can upload your own music. Magisto is a video creation tool that allows you to quickly drag videos and images from your desktop and or Google Drive account to your Magisto account. From the videos you upload, Magisto will select the best portions to remix and blend with images. After you've uploaded the media that you want mixed, select a theme and music for your video. Magisto creates your video after you've completed the steps of uploading media, selecting a theme, and choosing music. The final video is emailed to you. In addition to a web-based tool Magisto offers a Chrome app, a Windows app, an Android app, and an iPad app. Finally, Animoto is the standard in this category of video creation tool. Animoto offers a web app, an Android app, and an iOS app. All three apps let you quickly add music to a selection of your favorite pictures. You can upload pictures or import them from a number of social networks including Instagram. This post originally appeared on Free Technology for Teachers if you see it elsewhere, it has been used without permission.              Related StoriesFreshGrade Helps You Quickly Create Video Slideshows of Your Students' Best Work10 Good Options for Creating Digital Portfolios - A PDF HandouttheLearnia Offers a Good Way to Create Video Lessons 

The Psychology Behind Irrational Decisions is the title of a relatively new TED-Ed lesson that I watched over the weekend. The lesson focuses on the role of heuristics in our decision making processes. Of course, to understand the role of heuristics in making decisions students first need to understand heuristics. The lesson does a good job of defining heuristics for students. The video from the lesson is embedded below. Applications for Education A possible extension for this lesson is to have students think about and find examples of how heuristics can influence the statements people make in political discussions. This post originally appeared on Free Technology for Teachers if you see it elsewhere, it has been used without permission.              Related StoriesNearly 100 TED-Ed Lessons About NatureWhy Do Price Tags End In .99? - A Psychology and Consumer Education Lesson10 Educational Resources About the American Revolution 

This is the time of year that we think about activities that we can do to help students review the school year. At this time of the year I frequently receive requests for suggestions for tools to create review activities. The tools presented in the slides below can be used to create online games, iPad games, video quizzes, and interactive classroom exercises that engage students in reviewing the year's lessons. This post originally appeared on Free Technology for Teachers if you see it elsewhere, it has been used without permission.              Related StoriesInteractive Maps of Travel Through the Roman EmpireThe Week in Review - The Lilacs Have ArrivedThe Week in Review - The Overseers