Cueprompter - The online teleprompter

One of the problems when creating interesting podcasts is creating a script that is easy to follow and read. I have discovered this free service that enables you to create an easy to read script that appears like an autocue:


CuePrompter is a free teleprompter/autocue service. Your browser works like a teleprompter -no extra software needed.Bookmark this site and come again when ever you need teleprompter services. Free for any use (both commercial and non-commercial).

Jing

The concept of Jing is the always-ready program that instantly captures and shares images and video…from your computer to anywhere.

A really good resource for developing online environments, this web application can be used to capture anything on your PC screen or record video and upload it to the web.

Bubbl.Us - Free Mindmapping Software

Bubbl.us
Excellent and free mindmapping software. Mindmaps can be created, shared and printed from this online web application.

Copyright and Creative Commons

Get Creative - Video
This is a an informative video about how Creative Commons copyright works and how it enables people to give permission for their work to be shared by others without infringement of copyright law.

Click on the Creative commons image to find out more:

Photosoup

PhotoSoup is a visual word puzzle generator that allows users to create word search puzzles with tag-photo pairs taken from Flickr. The tag is hidden in the puzzle, and only the associated photo is shown as a clue. The objective is to find all hidden tags in the puzzle before you run out of time.

Splashup - Online Photo Editing

Splashup, formerly Fauxto, is a powerful editing tool and photo manager. With all the features professionals use and novices want, it's easy to use, works in real-time and allows you to edit many images at once. Splashup runs in all browsers, integrates seamlessly with top photosharing sites, and even has its own file format so you can save your work in progress.
Great for anyone who wants to edit images but doesn't have expensive image manipulation software on their PC - access to the Internet required!

Hyperwords

Hyperwords is a small (free) software application that will make any text viewed in a web browser interactive. Select any word on any page and choose a command; search, translate, reference, email, look up on a map etc. A very useful application but currently only availabe for Firefox and Flock with an IE version likely to be availabe later in the year. Have a look: http://www.hyperwords.net/

Free Control Software - Crocodile ICT Player

The Crocodile ICT Player lets you create and modify sequences of flowchart instructions, which can control on-screen characters or animations.
Based on our programming and control software Crocodile ICT, you can use it either on a whiteboard, or on individual computers.
The best thing, though, is this: the Crocodile ICT Player is completely free, and once you've got it, it's yours to keep.
Simply register and then download it from here:
http://www.crocodile-clips.com/ict/

GapMinder

What is GapMinder?
Gapminder is a non-profit venture developing information technology for provision of free statistics in new visual and animated ways. Goal: enable you to make sense of the world by having fun with statistics. Fun with statistics? It is true, have a look!
Gapminder’s Trendalyzer software unveils the beauty of statistics by converting boring numbers into enjoyable interactive animations.
View the online help
Search statistics through Google and watch it move with Gapminder. Google Subscribed Links makes it possible to search deep into Gapminder's moving graphs visualizing world development. Spring 2006.
Subscribe
Go straight to the graph

TeacherTube

An excellent resource for educators. The site contains a wide variety of educational videos. Brilliant idea!

Here is a sample e-safety clip:
(All videos can be embedded into web pages)

Internet Safety Websites

A few useful links for schools wanting to develop their Acceptable Use Policy(AUP) and source information about Internet Safety:
http://www.gridclub.com/teachers/t_internet_safety.html
http://www.ceop.gov.uk/
http://www.thinkyouknow.co.uk/
http://www.parentscentre.gov.uk/
http://www.thinkuknow.co.uk/
http://www.bbc.co.uk/webwise/course/jargon/a.shtml
http://www.bbc.co.uk/cbbc/help/safesurfing/
http://schools.becta.org.uk/index.php?section=is&catcode=ss_to_es_tl_rs_03&rid=12546
Online Bullying
http://www.bbc.co.uk/chatguide/
Be Safe Online
http://www.chatdanger.com/
http://www.childnet-int.org/kia/
Cyberbullying for Educators
Recently added advice on the use of ICT in schools from theLondon Grid For Learning:
http://www.lgfl.net/lgfl/sections/safety/

NASA's World Wind 1.3

A fascinating teaching and learning tool that exploits the large amount of satellite imagery available to NASA. World Wind lets you zoom from satellite altitude into any place on Earth. It lets you experience Earth terrain in visually rich 3D, just as if you were really there. Virtually visit any place in the world. Look across the Andes, into the Grand Canyon, over the Alps, or along the African Sahara.
Download it here

Stortroopers

Create a mini me! (or you!!) A bit of fun for the end of the year. This interactive site uses Java script and enables you to create stylised icons and avatars for forums and websites. Great fun and simple to use.
http://www.stortroopers.com/

Content Generator

Create fun starters and plenaries using this Flash content generator. The results can be uploaded to your Internet or Intranet website.

YacaPaca

Chalkface provide a wide range of assessment tools for KS3 and KS4. Click on the "Yacapaka" link to create an account.

Subtangent - Maths Resources

Excellent ICT resources for teaching mathematics in school developed by Calderdale LA. Try these Maths games based around the popular quiz show Countdown:

Many of the resources have been developed using Macromedia Flash. The source code can be downloaded (under a Creative Commons copyright agreement) and distributed free of charge.

Popular Geology and Education

The Education section of this website has excellent geology resources developed with schools in mind. There are links top other educational sites and topics covered on the site inlcude, mapping, volcanoes, geological timelines, fossils, earthquakes and lots more. Click on the BGS icon to go to the site. Well worth a visit.....

Promethean Planet

"An Active community for an Active Classroom" If you use Activestudio software and Promethean Interactive Whiteboards then this is an excellent place to find pre-prepared resources for teaching children of all ages. To search the database of resources click here.

GIS - Geographical Information Systems

The Ordnance Survey MAP Zone website includes an excellent resource called GIS Zone. It provides modelling and simulation software to teach pupils about Geographical Information Systems(GIS).
There are excellent downloadable teacher resources for exploring GIS systems in the classroom. Topics include; flood damage control, wind power location, crime prevention and farm management. The site provides opportunities to teach pupils about the benefits of digital map and satellite imagery modelling to make decisions and solve problems and provides a context for using ICT in the wider curriculum.

Podcasting Tools

Two excellent tools for podcasting:
Solidcasts
Want to create a Podcast of your own? This site enables you to upload up to 100Mb of sound files and creates all the xml and rss code needed to allow you to publish them for download via any Podcasting software.



Audio network
This is an great source of sound clips, music and effects to give your Podcasts a professional feel. The sounds aren't cheap but they are good....
I have created a short 45 second example sound file using Audacity and uploaded it using Solidcasts here:


RSS or go direct to the file here: demo.mp3

Pre-prepared VLE Content

With schools now developing Virtual Learning Environments (VLEs) for their pupils demand is increasing for high quality content. Most teachers don't have the time or energy to create new resources but many SCORM compliant solutions are being created and are available for download on to VLEs:
Synergy Learning UK Moodle Partner
STW IT Learning Centre
DiDA Courseware
e-Subjects.co.uk - Free Moodle Courses
Skool
Nelson-Thornes

Downloadable Interactive Whiteboard Resources

A few links to resource sites for the use of Interactive Whiteboards:
SMART website to download SMART software
Top Marks
BgFL
EdCompass
National Whiteboard Network
eChalk
Board with Teaching

Photo Story

Presentation software that is easy to use - create eye-catching effects with ease. Slideshows of still images can be saved as audio/video files (.avi .mpeg etc). Great for animation effects.

Sound and Video Resources

Useful resource sites for sound and video:

Moviewavs - contains freely downloadable sound files from TV shows and Films
SmokeCDs - free music samples in MP3 sound file format
Becta Digital Video Award - winners video clips
BritishPathe - British Pathe news archive
iStopMotion - animation examples in education
BT Education - Internet Radio kit for schools
Digital Stories - Mini movies from the BBC. Films made by local people using photos, video clips and personal items to tell stories from their lives.
Digital Video - a short course in how to make digital video
Onion Street - The BBC music room, the place to make, talk and listen to music
E-Jay - Music making software
Freesound Project - free sounds
f7sound.com - more free sounds
BookBox - Hear and see authors reading extracts from their books

Podcasting in schools

A useful link to a site that demonstrates how podcasts can be used in school.

http://www.recap.ltd.uk/podcasting/

An example site with Digital Stories made by secondary aged school children in America.


Radiowaves is an Education company providing services to enable you to publish pupils audio/video work on-line:

1. To listen to the stations created by students in UK schools click on the links below:
Special Schools
Hillside School in Fife
Ashleigh Air in Tyne and Wear
Great Ormond Street Hospital School in London
Radio Riverside a Study Support Centre in Cleveland

Full List of all schools Radiowaves sites

2. To read the Learning Teaching Scotland case study on Hillside's
Radiowaves activity click here:


3. To take part in Videowaves beta go to:
http://beta.videowaves.co.uk/login.asp

The password you need is videotrial

Seat Belt Crash Simulator

Found this on the Teacher Resource Exchange recently - can be used to teach modelling.

Live Virtual Classroom

http://www.horizonwimba.com/products/liveclassroom/

Live Classroom combines state-of-the-art interactive technologies such as voice, video, application sharing, polling, and whiteboarding, with traditional best practices of instruction.

Climate Change Experiment

Take part in the biggest climate experiment ever undertaken. Just click here to download the software

The experiment works by making use of your spare processing power. All you have to do is use your computer exactly as you normally would, and the programme will run calculations in the background. When it’s done, it will send results back to scientists in Oxford, who will combine everyone’s results. The more people who take part, the more complete their predictions about the future climate will be.

Interested? Visit the FAQ section to finds out more.

BBC JAM

BBC jam is a brand new learning service for 5 to 16 year olds, designed to inspire them to explore, learn and create.

It will give all learners in the UK free access to an interactive broadband experience, putting them in charge of what, where and how they learn.

BBC jam will be launched at the end of January 2006.

ARKive - Educational Resource

ARKive is the worlds centralised library of films and photographs of all the U.K. and worldwide endangered species freely accessible to all online. Hailed as the digital Noahs Ark, it has won numerous education and communication awards (and was launched by Sir David Attenborough).

The main ARKive website www.arkive.org is designed for use by 11 year olds upwards. Its content consists of the largest collection of wildlife and environmental films and images that can be viewed for free; the content is relevant to a wide range of science and geography subjects in primary and secondary schools (all can be downloaded free of charge).

Planet ARKive www.planetarkive.org is for children aged 7-11, and designed to make life science learning and environmental education a widely enjoyable experience. It fits in especially well with learning about living things in their environment for KS2 and 3. Again it is free and fun to use

ARKive Education ( www.arkiveeducation.org ) is for teachers? and offers downloadable briefings, lesson plans and project ideas to support KS 2 and 3 National Curriculum leaning targets. It too is free to use.

For further information go to: www.wildscreen.org.uk

Wikipedia

Want to find out more about this free on-line encyclopedia?

Click here: http://www.wikipedia.org

Have fun!

Recent Links - a test

Thanks to Andrew Manches for the links below, the first highlights how the Every Child Matter agenda impacts on ICT teachers (scroll almost to the foot of the web page to view/download the article. http://www.ictineducation.org/ and a resources link: http://www.btinternet.com/~tony.poulter/index.htm

4. Thanks to Phil at The Causeway for pointing out a section of the robots site below, that I had not visited. It's brilliant for some enrichment on control work:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/science/robots/
techlab/sub_programmeconstructor_build.shtml