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Monday, April 4, 2011

Thing 10: Voicethread- Watch, Listen, Collaborate!!

Podcasting/vodcasting is a great way to focus on the areas of listening and viewing in the five essentials of reading.  It is also essential to collaborate and to encourage higher level thinking when responding using reading strategies.  After all, “Reading is thinking” –that's what I always say… 
What if you could encourage collaboration in many forms, for many different types of media, in one place at one time?  Sounds like a mouthful, but in a word this is VoiceThread.  Watch the brief overview below:


That’s right you can put up to 15 different types of media in a presentation for your students to comment on and modify in numerious ways!  I love options, don’t you?
Just think-how could you use this for a center all week? 

You can also use this as a tool for students to collaborate on a class project.  All VoiceThreads are embeddable and can be put in a blog, wiki, Glog, edmodo or any other web 2.0 interface.

What else can Voicethread do?


I registered for this service over two years ago when it was free, so I already have a premium account.  It is no longer free, unless you are the first educator at your school to sign up!  Ed.VoiceThread is an awesome and affordable service your school can purchase.   It provides a safe and secure community.  It is around a $1 a student/educator if you sign up for a school subscription.   Beg and plead people!  District subscription anyone? 


Here is a Voicethread I made after the 2009 FAME Conference:




Post a 2-3 sentence reflection on the Junkie Blog about this type of collaboration for the classroom.

28 comments:

Nancy Keck said...

I have heard of Voicethread, but amidst all the technology we have been learning to use within the STEM grant at our school, I hadn't yet taken a look at it. I am so excited to finally sit down and actually see what it is. No wonder Mr. Waterman has been excited about it already. This is going to be a tool that will be marvelous for us to use. I see our students using this throughout our curriculum. We would be able to extend media classes beyond just our normal timeframe, by having Feature Island related Voicethreads out there for students to comment on. Currently, we have an activity sheet for students to do each month featuring information literacy skills. When they complete it, they become a Feature Island explorer. We could possibly incorporate the use of voicethread into this same concept. Great possibilities.

Sharon V said...

This technology tool adds another dimension to the classroom. Originally, I thought it would be more used by middle or high schools. With the tech savvy teachers we have at all levels, I believe some teachers at the elementary level will venture into this technology. I am intrigued by the collaboration part of it. To have several people participating in or working on a project together can allow for great discussion and learning. It is a shame that there is a charge for it.

Unknown said...

As a new Media Specialist, I see tremendous potential with using this tool to collaborate on subject matter in all areas of study. The only limit is our imagination!

Anonymous said...

Voicethread has the potential for collaboration in many areas. Some examples are: students could respond to a post for homework assignments; students would be able to collaborate from home on a group project; centers could be set-up for students to cycle through during the week; and students could conduct book clubs or literature circles. The downside is only half my students have ready access to Internet at home and I only have 2 working computers in my classroom (on a good day).

Meredith Gilbert said...

I am not sure about using this with my first graders. I do think it could be used to collaborate with teachers at other schools. This could be for interactive workshops, book studies, or collaborative planning.

Mrs. Ripperger said...

Voicethread is a collaborative network that allows teachers, administrators and students the ability to communicate with each other on various subjects. I can see how it could benefit students by letting them have a voice.

Sue said...

Students will enjoy using Voicethreads to react to lessons, novels, and teacher presentations. This is an exciting idea!

Señora Sarasua said...

I can see this resource as being very beneficial for students to not only creatively respond to images, but also to communicate with others on a subject or concept. The doodle aspect adds another dimension to their speaking as students can specifically indicate exactly what they are refering to.

Cyndi said...

This makes me wish for that perfect world of education with lots of time, money and computers. This could be so much fun and what a great way to motivate learning by giving every student a chance to speak.

stageforlearning said...

Not as excited about this tool as the others. It certainly has merit, but maybe for older students. Unfortunately, while I was trying to view the videos, they were very glitchy while buffering. Will try to watch again... A better experience would certainly increase my desire to try this in the classroom.

christine said...

I had never heard of Voice Thread before. As I was looking at the videos ...especially the one with you at the conference....it reminds me of podcasts...sonic pics. I can see the kids creating a voice thread for any topic. They can complete the projects at home or at school.

Jason said...

This is great for collaborating with other teachers. I'm not sure if I'll use this for my 2nd graders, but I can't say that for sure because I want to really immerse my class in Web 2.0 this school year. Maybe I could also save a few trees this year... :)

Time4Sail said...

Have really enjoyed using VoiceThread to create a Space presentation using photos I took from the Kennedy Space Center years ago. What a great way to create a presentation with your voice to teach concepts. Always looking for new ways to keep our students engaged in learning! :)

Sherri Callahan said...

I registered at VoiceThread and have a FREE account! I'm the first educator at my school...unbelievable! I am so excited about this! This could be the new portfolio assessment!In the art classroom, "critique time" is dismal, yet an important component in the Art Curriculum. I think VT might be a path to the future of ART ASSESSMENT for both student and art teacher! The artist-student could post the artwork, talk about it, receive comments...and later write it down as required by the curriculum.. Critiques among peers could be conducted anonomously; no more pressure to comment on the work just to impress someone! Parents can comment on the child's artwork, students could invite other teachers to see their work... THis is UBER-EXCITING x infinity!

I really am excited, Ms. McGinnis! THis class has introduced me to a way the spoken word can be used to create both anonymously and SHARED... the 2.0 ability of conversation allows change, evolution, growth; the true meaning of being creative...(in my opinion, for now). More later! :)

Mary Jo said...

Another great tool. I could see my first graders reviewing books a la Reading Rainbow. I think this would also be fantastic for teacher collaboration.

Mrs. Jacobsen said...

I was racking my brain trying to think of ways I could utilize this in a first grade classroom. I loved Mary Jo's idea of having a book review on the voice thread. It is unfortunate for all these wonderful tools we need working computers! I have 1 that works well, 1 that is glitchy. But I would love to do a book review on the computer for a listening center. Perhaps a grant for a set of laptops to be used as a center activity would be the way to go to access all these wonderful activities.

Katy said...

VoiceThread can definitely be used with primary students! Think of reading a story such as Kevin Henkes' "Wemberley Worried." The students each draw a picture of what worries them. You scan them in to Voice Thread and they each narrate their picture. Then the students can comment on another student's picture. Post it on a classroom blog or wiki and then parents can comment as well!

Cool Beans said...

I was surprized to see all the negative comments from the primary teachers. At first I wasn't sure how it was used in the classroom until I browsed and found a third grade classroom. The teacher had colloborated with the art teacher to make the presentation which consisted of the student's artwork, a written poem, and the student's voice reading it. I especially liked how the parents were able to comment on their students presentation. What a fantastic way to motivate our students and include our parents in our classroom. I was astonished that anybody thought the program was glitchy because I was able to create my basic voicethread in less time than the blabberize thingy. Plus the microphone worked the very first time! Thanks so much for sharing!

mkj said...

The collaboration feature is so valuable. But I also see Voicethread as a great tool for creating an electronic portfolio. What a great way for students to demonstrate all types of abilities: reading, speaking, listening, writing. A whole year could be chronicled. And the it becomes a permancent record where the student can measure growth from one year to the next.

andrews3 said...

I enjoyed browsing through the voicethreads on the website, especially the Weather Poetry from the 3rd grade class. What a great example of what our students could do with this technology. Younger children could do a class book with each child drawing a picture and writing a sentence, then reading it. Parents could view it on a class Wiki and add their comments. I loved the fact that other educators from all over the U.S. could also comment, maybe through Edmodo. What a great motivation for the children!

Anonymous said...

Voice thread seems to be a great tool. It uses many different paths where you could make your point. I can see myself in the near future getting an account and trying it out.
Thank for showing us this wonderful tool.
This does seem to be the way communication is going.

Christina L. said...

Voicethread is pretty awesome. I need to play around with it a little more to have full grasp of the potential for my class, but I know my 10th graders would LOVE it! This is a great way to get ALL involved, even the shy ones.

Anonymous said...

I liked the different comments on the dinosaur drawing and the family photo. What a great way for students to share opinions. It would also be great to have students present the voices of people within photos. They could incorporate research and then "be" the person who they are presenting.

Mme Augat said...

I think that I really would love to use VoiceThread! I guess because I teach older students, most likely. In my higher level French classes, we could use that for commenting, speaking, writing and sharing impressions on various cultural subjects. For AP especially, where culture is now playing such a big role, and where the students have to work independently a lot, because part of a multi-level class, VoiceThread could help guide a reflexion on various themes. It can all be done in French, of course. I like the "moderation" by the teacher feature: very important in high school! I may try it this year. I would have to pay, and have way more than 100 students, but if I use it only starting from level 2, it would work out. Exciting!

Mrs. Stewart said...

@ Mme

Try to get that FREE subscription... Just sign up...all they can say is no.

cathy said...

Voice Thread is a very exciting tool. I love the fact that it is interactive and that participants have a large variety of ways to become a part of a large project. This is especially valuable for providing shy or less verbal students a way to be a part of the "big picture" without compromising their feelings of security. I see this being used for class projects or even grade level projects. I will have to give some thought to using it in guidance since I often have to deal with the entire school rather than specific classes. I can see this as a tool in our continuing project of improving the culture of our school -- conflict resolution, bullying, general character.

Michelle Deibler said...

I was the first to sign up from my school! I got the free subscription. Now I can use it for class discussions and for collaboration with other teachers on topics.

Wright's Rippers said...

So I used Voicethread a while back and made this one about what we learned from Ruby Bridges. The kids drew pictures and wrote about Ruby Bridges. I also had a grandparent that ran the exhibit at a museum where Ruby Bridges was to speak. She showed her the voice thread and Mrs. Bridges loved it. She couldn't make a comment unless she set up and account but sent me an autographed copy of her book as a thanks to the class. I really do need to use voice thread again. You never know how it will cause that ripple effect. The kids learned so much about her and enjoyed the book she sent.

http://voicethread.com/share/410619/