Cool+Tools

=__Main Characters:__ Choose one of the tools below to create your visual product that will answer your compelling question=

VoiceThread is an online media album that can hold essentially any type of media (images, documents and videos) and allows people to make comments in 5 different ways - using voice (with a microphone or telephone), text, audio file, or video (with a webcam) - and share them with anyone they wish.

Glogster is an exciting poster-creation tool that provides a platform for students to combine text, images, video, and audio to create an interactive, Web-based poster masterpiece. It introduces students to 3-D communication skills, requiring them to merge the left and right sides of the brain as they seek to communicate and evaluate both information and meaning. The visual, audio, and textual capacity of Glogster not only will appeal to digital learners, it has the potential to support the visual literacy skills that are becoming essential skill sets for 21st century learners.

Video creation is very easy these days with Windows Movie Maker. Make sure your video is between 4-5 minutes. Since it will be short, you have to make each frame count towards answering your compelling question. Click here for a tutorial on Windows Movie Maker.

[|Prez]i  is a tool to create engaging presentations, similar to a PowerPoint presentation, but with more dimension and layering than a simple series of slides

__Supporting Roles__: You may choose one of the tools below as a secondary tool to include in your visual project
[|Wordle] enables you to create artwork from words, its wondrous properties also allow you to identify key words within a written passage and analyze content. There are unexpected ways to make use of word clouds, classroom teachers already have stepped out in front by identifying all kinds of applications for the classroom that encompass everything from assessment to test review to storytelling.

[|Animoto]: Create video slideshows (see [|Animoto for Education])

[|Voki]is a free service that allows teachers and students to create personalized speaking avatars and use them on your blog, profile, and in email messages. Let your avatar explain what you learned in your inquiry process.