Guest post: Mobile Learning at Braztesol Brasília

Today, we have a special post written by a dear colleague and a ConnectMe Education student, Priscila Renck. At the moment, Priscila is an English teacher at Colégio Marista in Curitiba, Brazil. She loves exploring edtech tools and has kindly shared some of what she learned during Braztesol 2016 - Brasília with us.

Mobile Learning at Braztesol 2016 by Priscila Renck

I'd like to share some of what I learned with Geoff Stead about Mobile Learning during the conference. He got a lot of experience working in Qualcomm and now he wants to bring the lessons learned there out to the wider ESOL world.

He talked about different apps:

• Kahoot (a game-based learning platform), 
• Plickers (poll your class for free), 
• Quizlet (flashcards, games and learning tools) 
• Padlet (to create and collaborate). 
• Coursera and Future Learn give us the chance to study at different world universities
• Pluralsight (online training)
• Lynda.com (space to learn business, creative, and technology skills to achieve your personal and professional goals)
• GetAbstract (business books)
• Evernote (note-taking space)
• OneNote (note-taking space)
• Office Lens (mobile scanner)
• Google Drive (cloud storage)
• Goodreads (readers and book recommendations) you can save time using them. 
• You can use Matterport to create 3D spaces
• Google Card Board and Google Expeditions can bring a new view of the world inside your classroom 
• Virtual Reality (VR) to build confidence or immersion therapy
• Bluetooth Beacons (location-aware app) can connect you with places you like. 

He also recommended some interesting Cambridge web spaces to visit, such as Practice Test Bank, English Weekly, and Virtual Speaking Test etc.

I am a technology lover and I keep learning by myself, going to conventions and take courses to learn more.


Team Priscila Renck shares tips from Braztesol 2016

Keeping things in your pocket

When you are surfing the web and you come across a really cool website, but it's not the right time to explore it, WHAT DO YOU DO?

 

This post has the objective to share a super simple way of organizing these links you wish to explore SOME DAY ...

POCKET is a Google Chrome extension and an app which can be downloaded to your smartphone. It allows you to save any link you want to view later and automatically syncs to your other devices.

How does it work? You download the extension to your Google Chrome browser and you will be asked if you want it to be synched to your other devices. The icon will appear at the top of your browser, then, every time you want to bookmark something to read later, click on the icon and the following box will appear, asking you to add tags to the saved page.

Later that week, when you find the time to go over your selections, go to the POCKET site http://getpocket.com/ to see what to explore. I've added POCKET to my bookmarks bar to make it easier for me to have access to these links.

If you're surfing the web using your cell phone, once you've got the POCKET APP  installed, every time you find an interesting website to view later, click SHARE and select ADD TO POCKET. As simple as that! So, imagine yourself waiting for a doctor appointment with nothing to do, it would be a perfect time to check out those websites you never find the time to try out. Click the POCKET icon on your cell phone and the websites will appear for you.

Why did I like this extension? Well, it's simple and I like the visual way the websites are organized. I also think having it on my Bookmarks Bar will help me remember I have interesting things saved in "my pocket" to explore.

App Smashing a study guide

This post is a simple app smashing I created for my students today using two great apps:

COMICS HEAD + THINGLINK

I usually try to make the revision guides I provide to my students more visually appealing. Apart from a paper revision sheet, today I'm going to offer them a VISUAL STUDY GUIDE to help them study the topics we've covered so far.

1. First, I created a comic strip with the COMICS HEAD app (IOS) with the images you can see.

2. Then, I linked resources which I had curated using the THINGLINK app (IOS).

And this is the result:

If you hover over the image, some clickable links will appear.

 Let's see if they are going to find it useful.

A day later, a colleague of mine inspired by my interactive study guide, created her own for her teenage students. With Bethânia's permission, this is her app smashing creation:

How to use the IATEFL app: a quick guide

I've already been to big International conferences and I know how hard it is to choose what sessions to watch. In big conferences in Brazil, we might have about 15 sessions taking place at the same time. However, IATEFL presents a bigger challenge to people attending it, sometimes there are about 22 sessions taking place at the same time, and HOW TO CHOOSE?

Well, the first thing I did was try to find the programme. It can easily be found at the IATEFL website

http://www.iatefl.org/liverpool-2013/liverpool-2013  or by clicking below.

Another great idea, MY FAVORITE in fact, is to download the IATEFL app from here http://www.iatefl.org/mobileapps.html for your iphone/ipad or android devices.

Then, explore the programme, bookmark sessions, add them to your planner and you'll have a better idea of what to expect.

I've used two different apps to create quick tutorials of how I've organized myself for NEXT WEEK at IATEFL 2013 Liverpool. 

The first one is a simple SNAPGUIDE,   http://snapguide.com/guides/use-the-iatefl-app/

Check out How to Use the IATEFL App by Ana Menezes on Snapguide.

The second one is a SKQUEAK which allows you to draw and record your voice as you talk about the images you've selected.
 Now, if you're attending the conference for the first time (like me ) it is interesting to watch the WEBINAR presented by Susan Bardhun HERE.

Cartoonize your movies NOW

http://www.cartoonaticapp.com/






Remember that A-ha video clip where the band turns into cartoon characters singing their song "Take on me"?

Well, if you're not as old as I am, here is the video which had us dancing in the late 80's.

I never imagined I could use that kind of effect so easily in videos I record with an iphone or an ipad. All you have to do is download the FREE APP Cartoonatic, choose a video from your device OR use the app to record a video . There are various effects you can choose ( the video below was done using "Pencil Jetty").

 

After recording the video, it says you can share it via facebook, twitter, e-mail or send it to YOUTUBE. However, I tried exporting from within the app but it didn't work. So, I saved it to my ipad gallery and from there uploaded it to my youtube account.

How can we use this app with students?


- You can record your students roleplaying dialogues they have created and then play the cartoonized version for the whole class in youtube later on.
- You can record students miming actions and then play the video for the class to guess what they were miming.
- You can have students record themselves interviewing each other.
- Students can create a story and roleplay it in front of the camera.
- Students can create a parody of "Take on Me"and record themselves singing it.
- Students can dub the original song "Take on Me" and act just like the video clip.

Any other ideas?