|
TeachersFirst Edge Entry: For moderately adventurous technology users. Designed for families to record a time line of events in their lives, this online tool serves the classroom teacher as an electronic time line for a collection of "stories." Each event on the "playable" timeline is a "story." See a quick sample here . Free membership allows you to add "stories" with up to six uploaded images each (no more than 3MB per image). You can also pull in photos from your Flickr or Yahoo picture account. The timeline is intended to be shared with others by URL. If you simply want them to see the timeline, you can provide the link (URL) via email or from your teacher web page. You can invite others to add, if you wish. You must be a member (free) to add to a story or timeline. See below for a special TeachersFirst member opportunity to request FREE premium membership.
This resource was featured in a recent New Teacher Hotline Podcast as one of the Tech Toolbox resources. Hear more about it on the podcast .
8576
In the Classroom:
If you use this tool as a teacher-only or whole-class account, you can keep a digital/timeline scrapbook of class events throughout the year. Make a time line using local, national, or international current events. Or look back in time and create a historical time line, scanning old pictures or using copyright free images from the Library of Congress American Memory Collection. Other ideas: artists musicians, writers from a certain period in history, the twentieth century in different countries, World War II timeline, Civil War timeline, timeline of insect stages, timeline of rock cycle, of a plant or tree, timeline or life cycle of migratory animals, personal timelines-- suitable for younger students only if they work with a parent's account. Elementary students could even interview grandparents and create a class timeline about their grandparents for Grandparents' Day. For collaboration, link up with another classroom in another town (or another country) to build a time line that shares events in each local area so students can see what was happening at the same time in another location, maybe in the opposite hemisphere (compare weather ans seasons!).
To have students log in on their own (13 years and older please), they will need individual email accounts. Our editors did notice that "fake" emails seem to allow you to establish membership. This does not comply with the user agreement, however, and your students may forget passwords. They will be unable to receive reminder emails with false addresses. Keep a record!
Some safety/content concerns: There is advertising on the side of the Ourstory pages (free version). There is also an "Explore" button which allows you to see random timelines by the general public (most are tame, BUT there is no control. Others can also COMMENT on timelines created in the free version. TeachersFirst recommends using a teacher account and carefully monitored spaces unless you have a written agreement and parent permission for students to use the full tools of the site with their own memberships (13 and over). You can limit problems by allowing students to take turns adding to a whole-class account with a single log-in. You can set the account to only show the changes with your approval.
The TeachersFirst Edge team has arranged with OurStory to explore classroom-friendly solutions. TeachersFirst members may email to support(at)ourstory.com and mention your TeachersFirst membership in the email to obtain a FREE premium account to OurStory. The premium account will allow you to set up individual stories for each of your students all from one log-in ("create a new profile"), block comments on a public story, use OurStory without advertising, and set up "privacy circles" for small group projects. Premium accounts also have more space for photos and can include videos. We will contact teachers using these free accounts for a quick follow-up later in the school year to learn more about possible site improvements and share great ideas for classroom projects.
Skills needed: Join the site (free or email a request for free premium version), Read through HELP, if needed. Under Settings, carefully choose approval levels and email notification, as well as personal URL for your story. Click Add Story to create an event("story")/item on your timeline. Upload or link to pictures (you could tag a set on Flickr for the project), continue adding and share the URL for others to see. Invite them to be allowed to add to the story. Adept users can Export the timeline to a blog or set up RSS feeds for changes so you know what is happening to YOUR Story and those your students are working on. Two recommendations: Under Settings, turn OFF "post image recommendations" to avoid image suggestions from Yahoo. Warn against the unsafe option of "Submitting a story to be Featured" on the story view page. |
|
